Hurricane Warning
by Lady Black Mage
Summary: No one said switching sides was easy. Arial flourishes from his training with Magneto, but grows unhappy in the Brotherhood. Meanwhile, Jubilee finds his old sketchbook and becomes interested in meeting Arial, while Professor Xavier dreams of a looming threat on the horizon... WARNING! Contains: Language, violence, OCs, and OCxCanon.
1. Prologue

A/N: I do not own any of X-Men: Evolution or its characters or elements. However, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. **WARNING: This fanfiction contains language, violence, and fancharacter/OCxCanon use! If you do not care for any of the above, this is not the fanfiction for you! NOTE: This fanfiction is the sequel to my other X-Men: Evolution fanfiction, "Tempest Fury." I highly recommend you read that one in its entirety before you start reading this one!** R&R please!

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Prologue: The Nightmare

Professor Charles Xavier was not given to having dreams.

_And yet, there he was regardless. He was not even completely sure how he knew he was dreaming, just that a vague awareness in the back of his thoughts had clued him in. He was standing near the edge of a cliff, its rocky face pointing out toward the sea. Wind was whipping all around him, battering his form with sheer force and ocean spray as the thundering of the sea and the storm rang in his ears. Gritting his teeth, he realized he was standing, standing on his own two legs, and he immediately shifted them to better stand against the raging forces of sea and storm. Where was he? And who else was with him?_

_ "I-I cannot control it any more!" a familiar voice with a distinct German accent sobbed, "It's too powerful."_

Arial?

_He turned toward the cliff's edge, squinting against the spray, just managing to make out the shaking outline of an adolescent boy with his arms outstretched, blonde hair drenched and stark against his soaking black clothes. He turned to his right, only half-surprised to find someone there he knew so well, also struggling against the high winds._

_ "We have to help him, Erik!" he found himself shouting above the wind, "He cannot do this alone!"_

_ Magneto responded with a grave nod, and the two started pressing forward against the wind. Despite the circumstances, Xavier found he felt strangely at ease. Arial needed help from them both. And together, they should have no trouble._

_ The wind was unrelenting, slamming into them with a galeforce as the sea rose and churned in its anger. His feet kept slipping backwards over the wet rock, and he began to fear he wouldn't make it when Magneto seized him by the shoulder, propelling them both forward. Only then did the two begin to make it, drawing closer to their young student. The cliff seemed to rise, going higher and higher, and the wind shrieked and howled as the waves below began to crash into the cliffside, but Magneto gave a snarl of anger and the professor gritted his teeth, silently refusing to give up._

_ But the second they drew near, something went wrong._

_ The shadows were poorly defined where they stood, most of the light having been swallowed up in the storm's angry gray presence. But the shadows were present nonetheless, and they shifted and moved and grew in ways that shouldn't have been possible. They rose from the ground like a living creature, coiling their blackness into—_

_ "Thorns?" he murmured._

_ "Charles!" Magneto yelled abruptly, jabbing a finger against the wind._

_ The strange shadow-thorns were everywhere, and like striking snakes, they surged as one toward Arial. The boy turned, face pale, eyes wide with terror as he desperately reached for the two older mutants._

_ "Help me!" he cried._

As one, they flung their hands toward him, straining against the wind to reach him. But they didn't even brush his fingertips before the thorns engulfed Arial and dragged him into the sea, and a high, mocking laugh rang in their ears.

Xavier woke with a wordless shout, drenched in sweat, sitting upright, his arm outstretched. He was shaking, breathing hard, his heart hammering behind his ribcage, and it was only after blinking several times that he realized he was in his room at the Institute, still in bed and wearing his robe. Pressing a hand to his heart, he slumped back against his pillows, slowing his breathing to a normal pace and shutting his eyes. The door to his room burst open a few seconds later.

"What's wrong, Charles?"

"We heard you scream!"

He opened his eyes again to see an edgy Logan and worried Ororo.

"My friends…" he exhaled hoarsely, "I'm sorry I frightened you."

"What happened?" Ororo asked, walking to the side of his bed, spreading her hands. "We were in the kitchen with Katy and Jubilee when we heard you."

"Nothing…" he answered, refusing to meet her eyes. "Just a nightmare."

"Charles, for as long as I've known you, there's no such thing as 'just a nightmare' where you're concerned." Logan growled, crossing his arms, eyes flinty.

"I know." he whispered, "But I do not want any of the children to be alarmed."

The other two exchanged a quick glance before nodding to him.

"Point taken. So are you going to tell us what it was about?"

He frowned, almost tempted to say no. The less anyone knew, the less panic and worry would come out of it. But he had known both Logan and Ororo too long to be deluded into believing that he could simply refuse and they would let the matter lie. He sighed and bowed his head, shutting his eyes.

"Yes," he answered quietly, "But you're not going to like it."


	2. Chapter 1: The Fourth Door Down

A/N: Once again, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. (If you don't know my deviantArt username to find my gallery, I'm on there as Yoruhoshi.) **WARNING: This fanfiction contains language, violence, and fancharacter/OCxCanon use! If you do not care for any of the above, this is not the fanfiction for you! NOTE: This fanfiction is the sequel to my other X-Men: Evolution fanfiction, "Tempest Fury." I highly recommend you read that one in its entirety before you start reading this one!** R&R please!

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Chapter 1: The Fourth Door Down

Jubilation Lee was not necessarily a trouble-maker in her own mind. She was an agent of mischief, and therefore, trouble _always_ just somehow found _her_. It was unfair really, to blame her for all the trouble she ran into when she was not the cause of it. And that was why she decided that this day, she was not going to let everyone in her plans.

It was a balmy Sunday morning, the perfect sort for going outdoors and running around like a bunch of crazy monkeys. That was essentially what the guys had decided to do, and Amara and Rahne had decided to join in, especially since some of the "senior mutant" kids were also up for a game of backyard football. It was the perfect opportunity for the new recruits to try building friendships with the established X-Men, something Professor Xavier encouraged.

It was also a perfect sort of morning to pull an Indiana Jones and go exploring the Institute manor.

Exploration was something Jubilee had had on her mind right from the start. Big place like this, there was bound to be _something_ fun (and relatively off-limits) that was being hidden. Her feeling on that had only increased during the tour the new recruits were given.

There had been a door to a room down the boy's hallway, a door that Ororo had specifically kept them from even going near. Ororo and Ashton Jackson—the really cool "bad boy" of the Institute called Parasite—had been showing the guys to their rooms when Jamie had rushed toward the fourth door down from the hallway entrance, wanting to know why he couldn't have _that_ room. After all, he had seen the window to the room when they first crossed the manor grounds, and he thought it was the best that there was to have. Before his fingers could close over the doorknob, Ashton's gloved hand had shot out and yanked the youngest mutant back by his shirt collar.

"No one…goes in that room." Ashton had practically growled.

"Why?" Bobby had challenged instantly, eyes straying to the door.

"That room belongs to someone." Ashton had replied firmly. "He's not here now, but he's going to come back."

"Ashton—" Ororo had started, but he had stopped her short with a look that Jubilee could only have described as desperate and pain-filled.

"He's going to come back." Ashton had repeated, turning and leaving them at that point, "He's got to come back. He's family."

Since that time, Jubilee had made it a point to ask as discreetly as she was able among the kids with seniority in the Institute what was so secret and taboo about the fourth door down. The Emppu siblings would simply ignore her. Scott, Jean and Rogue would become tight-lipped and start asking her questions to throw her off. Kitty and Chase would deliberately make awkward attempts to change the subject, and Kurt and Evan would immediately become moody and walk off. She felt like she was just barely starting to scratch the surface of the mystery when Logan had finally caught on and sat her down for a lecture about not poking her nose into sensitive business.

"But why won't anyone just tell me?" she had demanded. "I just want to know what it's about!"

"You'll learn about it after a while," he had answered gruffly, "But you gotta be patient, squirt."

She wasn't one for patience when it came to a mystery like that. And that meant today was the day!

All she needed was a partner-in-crime.

She lingered around the breakfast table, watching her peers that had woken a bit later hurry to get breakfast wolfed down so they could join everyone outside. Finally, she spotted the perfect fellow mischief-maker and slid down the side of the table to address her.

"Hey, Katy." She said as innocently as she could manage. The girl in question gave a huge yawn as she fussed with her long, wavy blonde hair, trying to pull it back into a ponytail and exposing her small horns in the process.

"H-h-heeyyy, Jubilee," she answered, shuddering on the end of her yawn. The effect was a somewhat comic one as Jubilee glanced down and saw the shudder pass through Katy's furry goat legs, making her hooves clatter slightly against the floor. Once she'd finished the battle with her hair, Katy turned her attention to her bowl of cereal and started eating, careful to speak between bites. "Don't see—how—you can—be so—bouncy after—the Professor—screaming us all—awake last night."

"I've got an idea, Katy," she explained in a low voice, a grin working its way onto her face, "See, everyone else is going outside to play football right now, right? I was thinking the two of us, you and me, could go do some exploring while everyone else is outside."

Katy opened her mouth to respond, then paused to think. She grimaced a few times, caught between indecision.

"It sounds really fun, but I kind of want to go out and play football with the guys, too," she said slowly, her faint Texan accent sounding a bit more prominent than normal, "I'm not sure, Jubilee. You're gonna have to sell me on this one."

"Aww, come on! You're going to have plenty of opportunities for backyard football; season's coming up soon, anyway. How many chances are we going to get to explore this place without anyone around telling us to stop being nosy?" Jubilee said, nudging her friend with an elbow. At that point, Katy's eyes lit up and she grinned broadly.

"Missy, I like the way your mind works!"

It was shortly after breakfast that they declined all offers to go outside, saying they were going to stay in and play Go Fish. Neither of them were certain that everyone fell for the story, but no one said anything against it either. The way Jubilee saw it, they were playing 'Go Fish' in a manner of speaking; they were just fishing for answers instead of card numbers. Regardless, she was going to save her particular mystery for last. First, it was high time they got used to the place.

The two girls spent the first fifteen minutes or so examining every inch of the foyer, seeing if there were some secret panel hidden on the walls that opened a hidden corridor. Of course, they found nothing of interest, and moved on to some of the hallways.

"Do you think there could be something in the lower levels we're not seeing?" Jubilee asked excitedly.

"I don't doubt it," Katy answered, "But I think we'll get to see all that eventually, and I'm not interested in gettin' my tail fried by some lasers down there if we make a wrong move."  
"Oh, alright, you've got a point there."

They moved on to the den, perusing it for a good fifteen minutes. Again they discovered no secret corridors or anything of the sort, but they did come across something that was hidden. Tucked away behind several of the other DVDs in the Institute's collection was a small case of more DVDs, older movies like "Ben-Hur," "Brigadoon," "Spartacus," "Gone With the Wind," and a couple other Charlton Heston films besides.

"Who do you think these belong to?" Jubilee asked.

"Looks like they might be Mr. Logan's," replied Katy, "Or perhaps Ms. Ororo's."

After the den, they were starting to lose ideas, and they jokingly "explored" the kitchen to grab a few toaster pastries for their expedition. Then, they started to move on to the hall.

"The boys' corridor?" Katy asked, "I'm not saying it's a _bad_ idea, but I'm not so sure I want to see what the inside of Jamie's room looks like."

"We're not going to go snooping in any of _their_ rooms," Jubilee said slowly, "I just wanna take a peek behind the fourth door down."

"The fourth door down…isn't that the room that Ashton said was off-limits to everyone? He said it belongs to someone that's not here right now." Her blonde friend said slowly, clopping a hoof against the floor in thought.

"Don't you want to see what it looks like?"

"Could just look like any normal guy's room."

"Yeah, or it could not. You aren't chickening out on me, are you?"

"No…I just think it's not exactly nice to go snooping through someone's room. Especially someone who's not here right now."

"Look, I promise, we're not going to snoop. We'll just open the door, take a quick peek inside, then shut the door and leave. No one'll ever know we were, much less the guy himself."

"Wolverine will know you were here." A new voice added in a tiny whisper. Both girls jumped and spun around to face a mutant they'd only seen a few times before, one who spoke rarely. Tiras Lee was a quiet sort of girl anyway, but her large, ram-like horns only made that worse; they amplified her voice if she spoke normally, causing anyone who heard her to get an overwhelming sense of nausea and vertigo, and if she screamed, her voice hit with the physical force of a battering ram. Aptly, her mutant name, as the new recruits had learned, was Ultrasound.

"Hey, Tiras." Katy replied. "We uh…didn't expect to see you here."

"I'm not much of a sports fan." She whispered. "What are you two doing? I thought you'd be out with the others. Why are you snooping outside Arial's room?"

"His name is Arial?" Jubilee asked skeptically.

"He might have picked out a mutant name by now and be going by that," Tiras said, "But his birth name is Arial."

"So what's so special about his room that everyone keeps it a secret and won't talk about it?" Jubilee asked.

"It's not really my place to tell the whole story," the horned girl replied, "But I can tell you the reason why it's so sensitive. A while before we picked up all you new recruits, Arial and Kurt got in a huge fight. Then Arial vanished for a day and when we finally found him, he was in a church…and Magneto had already gotten to him. The two disappeared while we all watched."

They had to struggle to hear all of her words, but once Tiras had finished, the other two girls almost wished they hadn't heard.

"Magneto?" Katy said. "Isn't he the one that…?"

Tiras nodded slowly.

"Geez, no _wonder_ everyone's so touchy about the topic!" Jubilee murmured.

"Now that you know, can we leave?" Tiras asked. "We shouldn't be down the boys' corridor anyway, and we'll get in trouble if you start poking around in Arial's room."

"Alright." Jubilee sighed, and together, she, Katy, and Tiras left and went down to the den. She was satisfied with what she had learned…for now. She _would_ go back on her own sometime and take a look in that room, and there was no stopping her. If this Arial guy had defected to join the Brotherhood for some reason, she wanted to see if there were any clues in his room, or any signs of what he was like before.

"So…why were _you_ in the boys' corridor, Miss Tiras?" Katy asked abruptly.

"I saw you two in the den earlier and I started following you." Tiras replied, "I was worried when I realized you found Mr. Logan's DVDs. He'd be furious if he knew!"

* * *

There was a quick, rapping knock on the door of the Brotherhood's boarding house before it suddenly opened and a tall boy with a cherubic face and long, curly blonde hair stomped inside, his blue eyes dark with the ghosts of anger.

"I'm back." He announced in a bitter voice.

"Aww, man!" Todd Tolansky groaned, "We thought you were the pizza guy!"

"Thanks for getting our hopes up, Arial." Lance Alvers added.

Arial didn't even glance over to the living room to see their expressions; it would have just made him angrier. There were footsteps as someone came over to address him as he started up the stairs.

"So uh…how did your training with Magneto go?"

This time the blonde boy did turn to look, and his residual anger softened a bit. Fred Dukes wasn't exactly the nicest boy at Bayville High, but he _was_ the easiest housemate to live with at the Brotherhood boarding house, in a way. Fred had been confused at first when Arial had come to live with them, but after his initial bewilderment, the bigger boy had done his best to try to make his new housemate feel somewhat welcome. Given the nature of the other three boys, Fred's small kindnesses were not lost on Arial, and the blonde boy did his best to return that kindness.

"It vas not too different from normal," Arial replied, "The same. Trying to show me how to harness _mein_ power through all the anger and rage."

He sensed the other boys were all watching him now, and he had to resist the urge to look over at them. Fred's eyes went wide and his face lit up with amazement.

"Oh wow…" He said, "You're so lucky! Special training sessions with Magneto…I wish I was as lucky as you!"

This time Arial did glance at the other boys, and caught a set of dark eyes glaring at him as Pietro watched in silent fury. He returned the glare sharply before looking back at Fred and attempting an awkward sort of smile.

"Oh, trust me, Fred. It's not always the sort of luck I'd wish on others." He replied, and resumed walking up the stairs.

"Where are you going?" Fred asked. "Pizza's going to be here any minute."

"I need some time alone," Arial called back down. "To think."  
Before any more questions could be asked, he darted up the upper landing, down the hall, and to his room, where he shut and locked the door. With a deep sigh, he sat down on his small bed, pulling his knees up to his chest, and stared out the window, heart heavy.

Living with the rest of the Brotherhood was far from paradise. Even with Fred doing his best to be a sort-of-friend, the others made him want to rip his hair out. Lance, whose temper was just as formidable as Arial's. Toad, who was a slimy creep. Tabitha, also known as Boom-Boom, who had just recently shown up and announced she would be crashing at the boarding house for a while, disregarding everyone's personal space and privacy. And especially Pietro. It was probably only under the standing orders of Magneto and Mystique both that the two boys didn't kill each other. Certainly, Arial did not relish living with the loudmouthed, bullying speed demon, and Pietro made it a point to always verbalize the fact he hated having the German boy around. Not even his private training sessions with Magneto, far beyond 'merely helpful' as they were, could totally take the edge off living with these boys.

Arial leaned back against the wall, burying his face in his knees.

Truthfully, he missed the Institute.

Granted, he didn't think too highly of Kurt Wagner, but the more he had given it thought in the past few days, the more he felt guilt over what had happened. He had been just as much at fault for that fight as Kurt had, if not more because he had initiated the first blow. And it wasn't the only mistake he'd made before he had left. Not to mention all the people he had probably hurt, including himself. It hurt whenever he thought about them, and about what he had done.

He would never admit it to the Brotherhood, but he missed the X-Men. He missed them more than he could express in words.

The sea of his emotions, turbulent as ever, flooded him with sorrow and longing. This was one of those moments where he would typically draw, paint, or make some form of art to express how he felt, to take the edge off. But he had none of his art supplies now, not even his old sketchbook. Magneto wanted him to keep his emotions raw, unfettered, so he could make better use of them with his powers.

He could only look around the room hopelessly, trying to lose himself in the thoughts of the art he wanted to make, to keep from falling into despair.


	3. Chapter 2: Plagued By Curiosity

A/N: Once again, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. (If you don't know my deviantArt username to find my gallery, I'm on there as Yoruhoshi.) **WARNING: This fanfiction contains language, violence, and fancharacter/OCxCanon use! If you do not care for any of the above, this is not the fanfiction for you! NOTE: This fanfiction is the sequel to my other X-Men: Evolution fanfiction, "Tempest Fury." I highly recommend you read that one in its entirety before you start reading this one!** R&R please!

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Chapter 2: Plagued By Curiosity

It was often said that curiosity killed the cat. Less well-known was the subsequent saying "that satisfaction brought it back." Granted, both Ororo and Ashton had made it quite clear that Arial's room was off-limits, and that message had only been reinforced by Logan and Tiras. One would think such clear rules were enough to deter any nosy young Institute mutants, and for the most part, it worked.

But Jubilee's curiosity had only been further piqued, and when she saw another opportunity open up during supper to explore the room, she seized it.

Supper had been relatively casual and calm, enjoyable up until the point where something had caused the dish of mashed potatoes to explode like a shrapnel grenade. Blame had immediately fallen on Berzerker, who in turn, insisted the culprit had to be Sunspot. After all, couldn't Sunspot use his stored energy to explode potatoes, too? And before anyone could stop them, the two initiated a short-lived food fight. Jubilee, taking it as the perfect cover opportunity after the first flung potatoes just missed her, had slipped out of the dining room and darted toward the boys' hall.

"Jubilation Lee," she mused quietly to herself, crouching low, "Stealth ninja master."

Tiptoeing as softly as she was able, she made her way to the fourth door down and took in a deep breath. This was it, the moment of truth, of climactic anticipation! She grabbed the doorknob and turned it slowly, taking care not to let it squeak too loud and draw attention down the hall, and she gently pushed the door inward. If she had been expecting anything too amazing, she found herself sorely disappointed. The room was furnished the same way all the other rooms were—a bed, a little bedside nightstand, a closet, a dresser, and so on—and the only personal touches were a painting hanging on the wall, and a forlorn-looking old backpack leaning against the bed's pillow.

"And talk about your boring, anti-climactic room." She muttered, stepping inside and glancing around, almost wishing some other new thing would appear. First she took to rifling through the drawers and under the bed, but aside from normal boy clothes, the only unusual things she found were a couple of hoodies with the shoulders ripped open.

"Who keeps hoodies with big holes in them?" she said, thought she already knew boys were impossible to part from their hoodies. You'd have better luck trying to get soda out of a vending machine without paying. As she took another glance around, this time she stopped to take a better look at the painting on the wall.

She wasn't an artist of any kind, but she could tell the work was something of a personal project. She had no clue how she knew that for sure, but perhaps it was just something about the feel of the painting itself. Maybe it was just one of those things people could tell about art. Perhaps this had even been painted by Arial himself, though if he was still an amateur, he was a pretty darn good artist already. The scene depicted was a woman floating just below the surface of the water. Her age was impossible to determine, but Jubilee thought she was incredibly beautiful, and her expression looked so serene and untouched. The woman looked like she was sleeping, but the blue-green tint painted into her skin told another story, and Jubilee stepped back in shock as she realized what it meant.

The woman had drowned.

Worse still was the unusual band on the woman's left-hand ring finger. It looked like a twisted wreath of black thorns, biting into her flesh.

"Geez!" she exclaimed with a shudder, rubbing the goosebumps that had raised on her arms. What kind of painting was this, anyway? And why did this Arial guy have it hanging up in his room? She shook her head and turned away, the solemn backpack catching her eye again.

If only to put the creepy painting out of her mind for a few minutes, she strolled over, picked up the backpack, and sat down on the bed with it. A fine layer of dust flew up into the air, and she had a brief sneezing fit before she finally got a chance to look the bag over.

To say the backpack had seen better days would just about cover things. It was definitely old, with various stains, tears, patches, holes, a couple broken zippers, and at least one very thin shoulder strap that a guy could probably tear in half. It was pitifully shabby and careworn, and she couldn't even tell what its original color had been. But as she turned it over in her hands, something gave a soft thump inside the bag. She sucked in a breath, her anticipation returning. Could it be the clue she was looking for?

"Pfft, yeah right," she snorted, trying not to get her hopes up, "Probably just some textbooks he forgot to return."

Nonetheless, she unzipped the backpack and took a cautious peek inside. There were indeed a couple textbooks, along with several crumpled papers, a hardback copy of "The Taming of the Shrew," a deck of playing cards, and a pencil case.

"Figures," she started to say, until she shifted the bag and saw something else sliding underneath the Biology textbook. Tentatively she reached inside the backpack, closed her hand over the corner of the mysterious object, and pulled it out.

A clatter somewhere farther down the boys' hall made her jump, snapping back to reality. She zipped the backpack closed again, replaced it in the spot she had found it, and on an impulse, stuffed the object into her inside jacket pocket before she looked at it. She jumped up from the bed, praying the dust would re-settle, and turned back to the painting on the wall. She had been lucky too, for in the next second, someone spotted her.

"Jubilee!"

She cringed and looked over at one of the last people she expected to see as he entered the room.

"What are you doing in here?" Dr. Hank McCoy asked, raising a furry blue eyebrow as he lumbered forward.

"S-sorry, Dr. McCoy," she began, "I know this room is off-limits, a-and I don't really have a real excuse to be in here, but after Ashton mentioned that this Arial guy isn't here and needs to come home—"

"You couldn't help yourself." He finished. "Curiosity killed the cat, you know."

"Yeah, but I just had to look! I've only heard a few things about this Arial, but no one's even said what kind of person he is or anything! I thought maybe his room might have some clues about why he left," she explained before stopping in mid-thought, and looking at the teacher curiously. "Can _you _tell me what kind of person Arial is, sir?"

"Unfortunately Jubilee, I cannot," he said with a sigh, "I have only seen Arial a few times in passing when I was still teaching at the high school, and even then I didn't know who he was. I only recognized his face after coming to the Institute and seeing Professor Xavier's files, but I have not seen him since my mutation brought me here. I have yet to actually truly meet him."

"That's okay. I was just—"

"Curious, I know. Now young lady, I think it best that you return to your own room and get started on that homework you haven't finished," he added with a knowing smile, "And I'll talk to the Professor to see if we can't forgive some of your curiosity."

"Oh, alright!" She grumbled. He motioned for her to follow him out, but she barely took two steps before stopping and taking another glance at the painting. "Dr. McCoy? Do you know why Arial has that painting? What's even up with it? It's kinda sad and freaky all at once."

Beast paused, glanced over his shoulder, and his face darkened in sorrow.

"Actually, I _can_ tell you that," he replied, "That painting was done by Arial himself, and the woman depicted is…was his mother."

"But this painting makes it look like she drowned."

"She did. Professor Xavier said she committed suicide, jumping off a balcony into the sea. Arial was about eight or nine at the time."

"Oh my gosh…and he watched it happen?"

Beast's soft blue eyes slowly left her and came to rest on the image of the woman.

"I think it's safe to say that he did."

* * *

Once supper was finished, Arial rose from the table and left the kitchen. He found himself wandering aimlessly into the living room and looking around when he realized what he was doing. He was searching every inch of the boarding house, hoping to find some blank paper and decent pencils to draw with.

"Do you need something?" A cold, condescending voice inquired. He turned to face the boarding house's other newest inhabitant, Faulkner Radulescu. Arial worked his jaw slowly. Faulkner had only arrived less than a week ago, and the other inhabitants were still getting used to him, nevermind that the hint of what his powers might be had a lot of them on edge. He stood now in the doorway, cradling his pet rabbit Felicity and stroking her long ears as he watched Arial, staying rather quiet.

"Nothing you need vorry yourself over, _Herr_ Faulkner," he answered, "But _danke_ anyvay for asking."

"I thought that was the case." The other boy remarked, smiling coolly. "You're so independent, Mr. Lavig."

It wasn't a compliment. Not with _that_ tone of voice. Arial's anger rippled below the surface as he scowled, balling his hands into fists. His power surged in and out all at once, like a bat's echolocation, and his senses connected him to all the water in the house within seconds. As if to accentuate this, the octopus tentacles growing from his shoulders curled and undulated like waves.

"_Und_ do _you_ need something?" he asked, doing his best to keep a neutral face and voice. Faulkner's eyes darted to the tentacles briefly before he looked back at Arial, a flicker of fear passing over his calm features and then quickly vanishing. Still, his grip on Felicity tightened slightly, and his posture went visibly rigid.

He was scared, and he was right to be.

"Not really, now that I think on it," he replied amiably, "I can got satisfy my curiosities elsewhere."

Arial didn't unclench his fists, but he managed to relax slightly, loosening his tie to his power, and he stared back at Faulkner just as coldly as he brushed past him.

"_Ja_," he snorted, "You do that."

He caught Faulkner's eyebrows climbing to his hairline before he turned away and headed upstairs. The guy was more oily than a car shop and gave Arial the distinct impression of a spider waiting to snatch the perfect meal in its web.

_I suppose I shall vind up going head-to-head vith him sooner or later,_ he thought as he climbed the stairs, rounding onto the upper floor landing.

"Woo, sounds like _somebody's_ got his panties in a knot!"

_And speaking of butting heads._ Arial nearly grumbled aloud in irritation. If anything, Pietro had only gotten worse since Arial had moved in, now that he had opportunities to taunt the other boy twenty-four-seven.

"I don't vear 'panties.'" Arial growled.

"Suuurrre you don't," Pietro said, crossing his arms and leaning back against the wall, "They're tighty-whities."

Arial halted in mid-step, turned, and gave him a flat look.

"Don't worry, Goldilocks," he went on in what was a rather exaggerated stage whisper, waving a dismissive hand, "Your secret's safe with me."

A sharp pang of sadness hit Arial somewhere in his chest; 'Goldilocks' was the pet name Wolverine had given him. His anger rose again and he clenched his fists tighter.

"Okay, _Casper_," he shot back with a pointed jerk of his at the other boy's white hair, "You vant a fight?"

"HA! _What_ fight?" Pietro laughed, spreading his hands and darting around Arial like a spinning dust-devil, "Like you'd even be able to hit me!"

"Is that a challenge," Arial asked calmly, "Or are you just lashing out because your daddy spends more time vith _me_?"

Pietro halted in front of him, planting his fists on his skinny hips. "_HA! That's_ the best comeback you've got?" He scoffed. "Let me clue you in on a little something, Cthullu: you're not _that_ special. Oh sure, your powers may have Magneto telling you that you're some kind of secret weapon, but the only reason you get extra private tutoring lessons is because ya skipped Power Control 101. _DUH_."

"Daddy's boy vants love _und_ attention, so he lashes out vhen he feels his status is threatened." Arial declared, and this time Pietro's face flushed pink with anger. Arial offered him a somewhat sardonic smile in return, feeling strangely triumphant.

"Don't vorry, Hairgel," he said in false reassuring tones, giving his arch-rival a none-too-gentle clap on the shoulder, "Your secret's safe vith me."

"You're walking on thin ice, Lavig." Pietro muttered in his most quiet, deadly voice as Arial reached for his bedroom door.

"Funny," the German boy remarked thoughtfully, "I could have svorn this floor vas carpeted."

And before the resident speed demon could get in a last word, he darted into his room and shut the door.

* * *

The latch clicked shut behind her and she was finally able to relax a little, positive she wouldn't be disturbed. She switched into her pajamas early and pulled out her homework to get started, but she could barely concentrate. Her brain was abuzz with the events of the day and all she had learned, and truthfully, she was starting to get excited. She wasn't entirely sure why, though. After all, what was there to be excited about over a guy who had left the Xavier Institute and she wasn't likely to meet any time soon?

Maybe he was cute. Artist boys were typically cute.

God, she hoped he was cute.

Jubilee's thoughts raced back to the object she had pilfered from Arial's backpack, and she flung her homework off to the side. She could always work on it later. She snatched her jacket up from where she had thrown it earlier and curled up on her bed with it, taking the thing out of the inside pocket and turning it over in her hands.

It was a sketchbook.

The cover was dark green, made of a heavy, board-like material, and it was just small enough to pass as a bookstore novel, but the inside threw off the chance that it could be just a regular book. The most immediate thing she saw was the message Arial had written on the first page.

_"This sketchbook is the personal and private property of Arial Lavig."_

"Uh-oh. Guess I'm intruding again." She murmured, only feeling a smidge of real guilt. After all, Arial wasn't there to object or for her to get to know personally, so why not try to get to know him through what he may have made in his sketchbook? It wouldn't be hurting anyone. With a quick, silent apology to Arial, wherever he was, she turned the first page.

The first few drawings were simple landscape sketches, none of them identical, all equally kind of bland. After that, there were a handful of more detailed drawings of statues, or at least, what looked like statues. A dozen pages in, she was surprised and a bit startled to see one of the mutants from the Institute. It was Ms. Ororo's nephew, Evan, lounging on a couch, preparing to shoot some bone spikes into the ceiling.

"Oh, wow…" she gasped, remarking at the detail. "Okay, Mr. Arial. If you've got this much talent, you better be cute."

"Hey, Jubilee." A voice seemed to come out of nowhere, and she jumped, turning to stare at the door to her room, shocked to see a ginger-haired girl watching her.

"Holy _crap_, Chase! Don't sneak up on me like that! I didn't hear you come in!"

"Sorry," the redhead said, offering a sympathetic wince, "Just wanted to check up on you."

"How come?" Jubilee asked warily. She had talked to Chase a few times before, and she seemed pretty cool, but the redhead never seemed to go out of her way to really hang out with anyone other than Kurt and Kitty, her two best friends. And she hardly went out of her way to interact too much with the newer recruits, particularly Jubilee and any others that Wolverine had dubbed 'trouble-makers.' Chase frowned for a moment, struggling to get the words out.

"Some of the others said you were poking around Arial's room today." She finally managed, and Jubilee blushed a little self-consciously.

"Oh. Y-yeah, kind of. I just…I sort of want to know more about him and what made him just up and leave," she said, "And it's not like I can just go talk to him in person or anything because he's not here anymore."

"They say curiosity killed the cat."

"You're not the first person to tell me that today."

"You really want to meet Arial and talk to him?"

"Why not? Maybe if we tried talking to him, we all might understand him a bit more. Maybe he might understand us too, and come back."

"Maybe." Chase said sadly. She started to add something else, but her scarlet gaze shifted and her eyes narrowed in a frown. "What've you got there?"

Jubilee glanced down and realized with a moment of panic that she still had Arial's sketchbook laying open on her lap. Heat rushed to her face and she slammed the cover shut.

"Oh, nothing," she said, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible, "Just…studying."

"Uh-huh." Chase answered dryly, not buying it. Still, she turned and left with a brief good-night, shutting the door behind her, and Jubilee hugged the sketchbook to her chest with a sigh of relief.

"Please, Chase," she whispered, hoping somehow the other girl could still hear her, "Please don't tell anyone."

* * *

A/N: Hey, me again. Anyone care to guess what the theme of this chapter is? /brick'd. In any event, I felt Jubilee's character wasn't done justice in the XMEvo series, hence I'm going to try working on building her character a bit here. (I'm also considering changing up Jean Grey a bit. She's such a canon-Sue, and I am tempted to try making her less of one. Might not, though. I have a feeling I'd get bitched at for making her more believable.)


	4. Chapter 3: The Ocean's Cauldron

A/N: Once again, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. (If you don't know my deviantArt username to find my gallery, I'm on there as Yoruhoshi.) **WARNING: This fanfiction contains language, violence, and fancharacter/OCxCanon use! If you do not care for any of the above, this is not the fanfiction for you! NOTE: This fanfiction is the sequel to my other X-Men: Evolution fanfiction, "Tempest Fury." I highly recommend you read that one in its entirety before you start reading this one!** R&R please! Also, the title of this chapter is pure symbolism, and a huge thanks to Fauna's creator for helping me with it. It ties in directly to Arial's difficult temper, which seems to be the most prevalent element through this entire chapter.

* * *

Chapter 3: The Ocean's Cauldron

"Man, I dunno about you guys," Fred began as he delicately turned some French toast over in a skillet, "But I am _so not_ looking forward to school today."

"Don't you mean every day, Blob?" Pietro grumbled as he walked into the kitchen and started his own hunt for food.

"I don't see why that is," Faulkner remarked pleasantly in his oily way, "School can be quite entertaining."

"Speak for yourself," Todd groaned, leaning across the table and snatching the box of Peanut Butter Crunch from Arial, "School _ain't_ fun. I'd rather go buy every stinkin' box of cereal with one of those cheap 'prizes' at the bottom of the box and eat my way through 'em."

"Bet you vish Chase vas the prize at the bottom of the box." Arial piped up. Todd's face immediately darkened in a blush as he half-choked, and Arial allowed himself a cool smirk, snatching the cereal box back with the snap of a shoulder tentacle. To everyone's surprise, Pietro actually began to snicker, though he quickly tried to mask it as a sneezing fit.

"Ugh," Faulkner groaned, "You are all disgustingly crude."

"You said it, honey!" Another voice added as Tabitha strolled into the kitchen. "Living with a bunch of _guys_ is a pain. No offense, Arial." She tacked on as an afterthought, offering the blonde boy a genuinely sweet smile.

"None taken." He shrugged, pouring his cereal.

"Mm, Freddy! Are those pancakes?" she purred, moving over to see what was cooking.

"French toast," he corrected, "Want me to make some for you too?"

"Thinking about it," she said, though she cast a devious look in the direction of Pietro and his toaster pastries, prompting him to stuff one halfway into his mouth and zip out of the room. "Spoilsport!" She shouted.

"Let him go, Boom-Boom," Arial said from his seat at the table, "Breakfast is a lot quieter vithout him, anyvay."

"I heard that!" Came a shout from upstairs, followed by the sound of a door slamming in defense of short-lived pastries.

"Case in point." Arial said, rolling his eyes.

"You know, Ari," Tabitha said as she took a seat at the table, "I still don't know why it is you and Mr. Smooth hate each other."

"That's a bit of a long story—" he began.

"—And Arial can save it for another time," Lance snapped as he finally entered the kitchen, tussling with his brown locks in frustration, "Let's hurry up with breakfast, losers, so we can go."

"Since when are _you _so eager to go to school?" Todd asked suspiciously.

"Since none of your business." Lance shot back calmly.

Arial and Tabitha exchanged wry smiles. The German boy could at least say that much for living with the Brotherhood; there was never a dull moment.

"Do I _have_ to sit in the back of your Jeep?" Faulkner protested, casting a dark look in Boom-Boom's direction. If there was one thing the Brotherhood had learned about their newest housemate, it was that he hated being touched. Really, he seemed to hate physical contact of any sort. Tabitha of course, either hadn't gotten that memo or simply chose to ignore it, which had led to a rather grumpy Faulkner on their first shared car ride.

Lance had picked up on that in a heartbeat though, and he smiled now in a pitiless way at the younger boy.

"Sorry, newbie," he answered, "My Jeep, my rules."

"Breakfast is served! Sit down everyone, this is gonna be the best breakfast you've ever had in your entire life!" Fred bellowed, turning to the table with a broad smile and a plate full of French toast. Almost at once, Pietro reappeared in the kitchen door with a rush of displaced air and a sneer on his face.

"Sorry Blob, not interested. I could get Sunshine Daisy germs when you guys pass the plate."

Arial swung around in his chair, lashing out with his shoulder tentacles, but Pietro was already out of sight and darting back upstairs with a nasty laugh.

"_Der schiesskerl_." Arial growled.

"Whadja say?" Todd asked.

"I'm not repeating it in English," came the stiff reply as the blonde head nodded to indicate Tabitha and Faulkner, "There are ladies present."

"Are you looking for a fight, Mr. Lavig?"

"Oh, sorry. A _fraulein und_ a gypsy."

Faulkner leaned back in his chair, seething.

"Come on, you clowns!" Lance said, huffing in exasperation, "We're gonna be late!"

* * *

As luck would have it, they did not end up being late to school at all, but in Arial's opinion, being on time was no less irritating that morning. The new principal, Mr. Kelly, was a suspicious and distrusting sort of man, and when they encountered him at the door, he insisted on giving Arial a hard time about his clothes. When the other boys tried to sneak past him, he got onto them too, and it was only after Faulkner provided a bit of psychic interference that Mr. Kelly allowed them to pass.

"Looks like you've got a few useful tricks up your sleeve after all, honey!" Tabitha remarked, bumping her hip against Faulkner's, much to the Romanian boy's irritation.

"I don't suppose I have class with any of you?" he prompted, and the others shook their heads. Arial, sensing what was about to follow, gave a grumble of anger and adjusted his leather jacket.

"Give me your schedule _und_ I'll point out your first period." He finally said, and as Faulkner fished out his list of classes and handed it to Arial, the others scattered, each to their own devices.

"Oh, your help is _much_ appreciated," the younger mutant crowed in honey-sweet tones. Arial glared at him, beginning to crumple the paper in his hand.

"Drop the act," he said quietly, "You are so fake you make Maximoff sound pleasant vhen he talks."

He thrust the schedule back at Faulkner, jabbing a finger in the direction of the other boy's class.

"I have no patience for you _und_ your act, _spinne_. _Und_ if I had to guess, _Herr_ Magneto vould not, either."

_That_ got a reaction. Faulkner's eyes popped open wide, he clacked his teeth shut, then slowly turned and walked to his class. Arial sucked in a few breaths, trying to push back his temper. The last few weeks were more confusing for him than he care to admit. He had spent so long trying to master his anger, to keep it controlled. But Magneto wanted him to revel in it, to use it to fuel his hydrokinesis. If anything, the two conflicting principles only served to puzzle him. Anger could destroy a person, tear them down from the inside-out, but it was also a powerful weapon and motivator.

He spun and took to a side hall, feeling the need to change things up a bit and take a different route to class.

_Vill I ever find a good balance between the two?_ He wondered, pulling a mechanical pencil out of his bag and slowly spinning it between his fingers. He started to lose himself in his thoughts, content to let the world around him vanish, until a prickling wave of animal awareness shot through his shoulder tentacles. With a start, he glanced down the hall at the other students, and ducked into a doorway.

Moments later, a group of girls came into view, and Arial recognized two of them instantly. Chase Owens and Kitty Pryde were leading a small group of girls around, doubtless showing them to their classes. Or else, just doing that weird thing girls did where they always had to travel in packs. Arial frowned as he took them in, studying their faces. New members at the Institute, no doubt. It was bad enough, thinking about the possibility of fighting his friends sometime alongside the Brotherhood. But going up against a bunch of newbies too, especially girls?

"Arial, you _dummkopf_, you never should have left." He muttered to himself, but the words died in his mouth as two of the girls came close to his poorly-chosen hiding spot. One was a bit shorter than him with wavy blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail, and a sketchbook tucked in among her class materials. A kindred artistic spirit perhaps? She addressed the girl never to her with the faint hint of a southern drawl, and Arial glanced at her companion.

She was slightly taller with straight, long black hair and Oriental features, with a laughing, crooked sort of smile. Arial leaned a bit further out of his hiding spot, watching as they two passed him and kept going down the hall, his stomach doing strange little hops the whole time. The girl with the ponytail suddenly said something, and her friend burst into laughter, her giggle punctuated by a small snort at first, her canary-yellow jacket shaking as she laughed. Slowly, Arial felt the corners of his mouth raise in a goofy smile that he couldn't quite control.

"Now I _know_ I never should have left!" he declared before snapping back to reality and resuming his trek to class. Strangely though, the morning seemed a bit brighter than before, and he started whistling the tune to "Edelweiss" on a whim, a little skip in his stride.

* * *

"So what's this I hear about you going back to the room last night?" Fauna asked out of the blue. "What's-his-name's room."

"Arial." Jubilee answered before she could stop herself, the color draining from her face when she realized what she had said.

"So you _did_ go back!"

"Well, I had to find out more about the whole situation! I mean, how could just one little fight cause a guy to…I dunno, switch sides? That _can't_ be the whole story! There's gotta be more to it than that! I went back to see if I could find more clues. Didn't really find much of anything though. I got caught. Beast says I can't go back in there any more, at least not without permission, which I'm probably not going to get for a while, but at least he tried to answer my questions."

"Okay, and? What did you find out?"

"Only that…" Jubilee hesitated, then lowered her voice, feeling rather awkward and out of place with saying what she was about to, "That his mom died when he was young. Jumped to her death and drowned."

"Oh my…" Fauna said quietly, her expression going soft with sympathy. "Did you find out why?"

Jubilee shook her head. "I'm hoping one day I may have the chance to ask Arial himself." She replied as they walked into first period and took their seats. "Man, I hope he's cute."

"Wait, what?" Fauna said, nearly dropping her Geometry folder. "What does a guy being cute have to do with—"

"He's an artist, Katy!" she sighed. "You know, boys that are artists are supposed to be cute in that kind of quiet, profound way. Same way that jock boys are cute in that buff, muscled kind of way."

"Oh geez, sweetie." Her friend groaned, and Jubilee could hear her hooves faintly clattering against the floor, despite the normal feet she displayed via her image inducer's illusion. "You actually believe those kinds of stereotypes?"

The blush started at the roots of Jubilee's dark hair and soon swamped her entire face. "Well…"

"Because that's all they are, is stereotypes. Besides, we're all mutants; no stereotype fits us." Fauna whispered, leaning toward her friend so they wouldn't be overheard. Jubilee groaned, hitting her head against her desk.

"I hate it when you're right."

* * *

Arial's good mood persisted through the day up to the lunch bell, and he decided to take his midday meal outside. After all, the rest of the Brotherhood preferred to eat inside, so he wouldn't have to worry about being annoyed by the people he shared a table with. A few of the picnic tables were already occupied, so he was left to look around and find a good tree to sit under, away from nosy humans. His hopes of solitude were quickly fading however, as it seemed like half the school or something were all outside for lunch that day. He started walking along until he spotted someone sitting by herself under a tree some distance away from everyone.

The blonde girl with the ponytail from earlier that morning.

He took a few steps in that direction, then froze, remembering she had been with some of the other Institute girls when he had seen her. But at a quick look, he saw no sign of Chase, Kitty, Jean or even Rogue anywhere nearby. He breathed a sigh of relief, confident he could address this girl without being bothered.

She was busy sketching as he walked up to her, and focusing so intently she didn't even notice he was there. He stepped around her at a better angle, and watched quietly for a few moments as she drew, despite the fact she adjusted the angle of her arm to hide her work. He knew what it felt like to any artist to be watched in the creative process, so he couldn't bring himself to stay quiet for long.

"Excuse me, _fraulein_. Could I sit vith you?" he asked. She looked up, as though not surprised to see him at all, and nodded.

"I was wondering when you were going to say something." She replied. "You were standing there hovering over my shoulder long enough."

"_Verheizung_," he said sheepishly, sitting down next to her, "I just vanted to see vhat you vere drawing."

"Just whatever comes to my mind." The girl replied.

"I understand that." He said with a nod. After a second's hesitation, he started eating his lunch, keeping an eye on her. A few minutes later, he decided to go ahead and ask. "So you attend the Institute?"

She stopped drawing instantly, turning to stare at him, and he threw up his hands to indicate he wasn't a threat.

"Relax, I do not bite," he whispered, "I vas just vondering vhat your…gift is."

"You're awful nosy for a fella what hasn't even introduced himself." She said slowly. At this he smiled, tilting his head slightly.

"Call me Kraken for the time being," he replied, "_Und_ if it makes you feel any better, I vill show you vhat I can do."

He turned then, his gaze finding Duncan Matthews bending over to drink from a water fountain, and he nodded at the girl for her to watch. He cast his consciousness further than before, and could feel the water pull through the fountain's piping. He gave the flow a sharp nudge with his mind, and within seconds the fountain sprayed violently in Duncan's face as he watched his work, chuckling quietly. The girl stifled an abrupt snicker and glanced at Arial.

"You did that?"

"Part of the reason I am called Kraken."

"There's more to it?"

"_Ja_, but the rest I am not quite ready to just show in front of the school."

"Yeah? I think I know how you feel there." The girl said, fiddling with a rather fancy-looking digital watch on her wrist.

"Is that an image inducer?" he asked, making her jump. "It's okay, I know about those too. So vill you tell me?"

"Call me Fauna," she said in a low voice, "And my gift…think Mr. Tumnus meets Hercules and Dr. Dolittle."

Arial raised his eyebrows. She looked like a faun? That explained the image inducer. And the Dr. Dolittle reference…could that mean she could talk to animals? Made sense, if she was part one, and if so, that meant her mutant name actually had a bit of a double-meaning. And the Hercules thing…Hercules was famous for—

"You have super-strength?" he hissed, and she clamped a hand over his mouth instantly.

"Shh, don't advertise it!" she hissed back, taking her hand off his mouth and looking around nervously. "I may be proud of who I am, but I'm also not ready to just show everyone here."

"_How_ strong?" he whispered.

"I once caught an entire side of a barn, when it was falling. It wasn't _that_ heavy."

Arial's eyebrows shot up higher, threatening to vanish among his bangs.

"Well it wasn't all that impressive. My confidence started waverin', and then my strength gave out. Thankfully that was the day Professor Xavier and Kurt Wagner chose to come recruit me." Fauna said, smiling wistfully, a tiny blush coloring her cheeks. "Kurt actually saved me. He teleported over and grabbed me before I got flattened."

At the other German boy's name, Arial's stomach twisted with a twinge of guilt. He still wasn't too fond of Kurt, but he really did need to apologize. To avoid saying anything in response, he crammed some more of his lunch into his mouth to buy some time. Unfortunately, Fauna noticed this.

"Hey, why'd ya clam up all of a sudden?" she asked. He didn't completely meet her eyes, tilting his head from side to side as he tried to keep his expression neutral, rolling his shoulders in a helpless shrug that made his tentacles jerk slightly. Fauna frowned at him in silence for a little bit, then opened her mouth to speak.

"Yo, Cthullu!"

Both of them turned just in time to see Todd Tolansky coming up to them, looking rather irritated. Arial glared at him.

"It's Kraken." He growled.

"Hey, Pietro's nicknames for you are catchy. So sue me." He said with a shrug. "Now if you ain't too busy, I gotta take you somewhere to talk to someone."

Fauna glanced at Arial warily, and he mouthed that it was okay, getting to his feet.

"Come _on_, Lavig, hustle it!" Todd urged, "We don't got all day, y'know!"

"Lavig?" Fauna parroted. "As in…Arial Lavig?"

He turned and offered her a smile.

"_Ja_. It's my birth name," He replied, "And I'm guessing you probably already got the run-down about me. Still, it vas nice to meet you, _Fraulein_ Fauna!"

And then he left to follow Todd, not catching the look on Fauna's face as he went.

* * *

Chase checked her watch again, starting to get impatient. She should have known better than to send Toad to do this.

_If they don't get here soon_, she thought, _I'm going to tie up Tolansky with his own tongue!_

"Owens!"

She gave a sigh of relief; she hadn't really been relishing the idea anyway. She looked up, unsurprised to see Todd heading her way with a tall blonde boy in tow, but she almost didn't recognize Arial until he got closer. It was only with a shock that she at last saw the eerie ripples in the shoulders of his clothes that she realized she wasn't hallucinating. The Arial she remembered looked like a skittish, shy boy in baggy, over-sized hoodies and pants with a sketchbook always in hand. This Arial was striding with a dangerous air and total confidence, and was decked out like a punk rocker in all black and studs with a leather jacket that should have belonged on some biker, and a mechanical pencil twirling restlessly between his fingers.

"Arial?" Chase asked.

"_Ja_," he said coolly, "Did you think I vas someone else?"

Chase took a step closer and Arial instantly took one back, keeping a good ten feet of space between them. Chase took another look at Arial, and felt a pang of sad shock for her lost friend. Arial's blue eyes, once so bright and full of lively innocence, were as dark and cold as an empty nightmare, with the hard, jaded weight of the world he had been exposed to lining their depths. Underneath his eyes were dark rings, the kind you only got from lack of decent sleep, and his skin looked pale in a sickly sort of way.

"What's Magneto done to you?" she murmured before she could stop herself. Arial's eyes narrowed and he tilted his chin angrily in challenge, and his entire frame went dangerously still.

"He exposed me to the truth. That Professor Xavier _und_ the rest of you don't vant me to use my powers like I am meant to. Do not even try lying to me, Chase. I do not vant to hear some little sob story about how you all vant me back. I know the truth now; I am too dangerous for the X-Men."

She said nothing as she listened to him, her powers setting to work, desperately wishing inside that she had the Professor to speak to. Her powers revealed the faintest of crimson glows around Arial. Whatever delusions Magneto was trying to fill Arial with, they weren't totally working. Arial must have believed a lot of whatever he was hearing, but some part of him, some tiny part, still was resisting those charismatic lies.

She really wished the Professor was at her side. He would know what to do with someone who was fighting himself on the inside.

"But you did not just call me here to try to tell me the error of _mein_ vays," he said, shooting a look at Toad, "He says you have something to tell me."

Chase hesitated. Was it a safe idea still to tell him, now that she had seen what he was turning into? She chewed her lip, mind racing.

"I'm listening." Arial stated impatiently, spreading his hands. But when she still couldn't bring herself, he gave a rolling shrug and turned on his heel. "Fine, then. Suit yourself."

"W-wait, Arial!" She blurted out, "Your sketchbook!"

"Vhat about it?" He said casually, starting to walk away.

"S-she took it out of your room! She has it!"

He stopped in mid-stride, and slowly looked back over his shoulder at her.

"Who has it?" he asked.

Chase clapped a hand over her mouth, a sense of terror warning her she'd said too much already. Arial's face hardened as he turned back around and took a few angry steps toward her.

"Chase," he said in a quiet voice that set her inner alarm bells ringing, his eyes going dark with silent anger, "Who. Has. _Mein_. Sketchbook?"

Her feet responded before her mouth could. She turned and ran back inside the school, desperately running for her fifth period classroom, feeling those furious blue eyes drilling into her back the whole way.


	5. Chapter 4: The Note

A/N: Once again, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. (If you don't know my deviantArt username to find my gallery, I'm on there as Yoruhoshi.) **WARNING: This fanfiction contains language, violence, and fancharacter/OCxCanon use! If you do not care for any of the above, this is not the fanfiction for you! NOTE: This fanfiction is the sequel to my other X-Men: Evolution fanfiction, "Tempest Fury." I highly recommend you read that one in its entirety before you start reading this one!** R&R please!

* * *

Chapter 4: The Note

There were few things Arial had to think of in order to get angry for the training sessions with Magneto. One of them was his bullying at Pietro's hands. Another was his father's sick, twisted attempts at playing God.

The knowledge that someone had taken his sketchbook made a third.

Almost as soon as their training session began, Arial was able to feel the pull of the water somewhere deep in the core of his being. Before he could consciously register what he was doing, he threw himself into the rage he felt and used it to clamp down tightly on the elusive pull. The essence of the water struggled faintly against his mind, but his anger was fresh, burning white-hot, and he wouldn't relent in the slightest. He pushed the connection through his core, raised his arms, and thrust his left hand forward.

A huge pillar of water rose from the lake and shot forward, a jousting lance in the hands of his power. He thrust the other hand forward too, and a second pillar of water rose to chase the first.

How _dare_ anyone touch his sketchbook!

The water redoubled its force, the jet streams becoming massive.

How _dare_ they! His sketchbook was _private_!

The two streams began to twist and interlock, like giant strands of DNA, as they shot further out, going higher and higher above the lake.

Art was his means of creative, therapeutic outlet. He bore his very _soul_ in his art! That sketchbook wasn't just for any nosy girl to go flipping through!

The water in his thrall rose several stories into the air, starting to arch back down to the surface of the lake. It had barely splashed back into the rest of the water when the entire surface of the lake began to erupt with rows of water spouts, rising like geysers.

"Excellent, Arial! Your power is growing wonderfully!" Magneto shouted from somewhere behind him above the water's roar. A sense of pride rose in his chest, buoying both he and his powers. He felt so much taller, stronger, so much more _formidable_. With a final rush of his rage, he let loose a snarl and the surface of the entire lake exploded, the water crashing back down and raining on them as though a giant had just cannonballed into it. With a sigh, he lowered his arms, letting his anger flow out on the tide, and waited wistfully, mourning the sudden telepathic separation from the water. The pulse of his anger had burned down to a bitter throb at that point, washed away by the water's pull, but he wasn't completely letting it go any time soon.

_I bet Jean took it_, he thought irritably, _She vas alvays striking me as the nosy type_.

He inhaled and exhaled deeply, then turned to face Magneto, trying to work up a smile.

His attempt failed when he saw the guarded look on his mentor's face as those dark eyes studied him closely.

"_V-vas_? Vhat is wrong?" he asked, his hopes and excitement collapsing. "I thought you said I vas doing vonderfully."

"You _are_, Arial," Magneto said in reassuring tones, "You are progressing far beyond what I had expected in less time than I had hoped. In fact…I think I may be able to push our plans a bit further along."

Arial scowled, chewing his lip and shoving his hands into his pockets. The "plan" again. Magneto was always referring to it, and the way he kept it all hush-hush gave the impression it was a huge, important sort of affair. But he still wouldn't let Arial in on the details, even though the German boy was apparently the key to the whole thing.

"Why the mutinous expression, Arial?" Magneto asked, and when no answer was given, he guessed. "The details of my plan again? Don't worry, you'll know soon enough. After all, you _are_ playing a crucial role in it."

_A_ crucial role? Try _the_ crucial role. And if he was the key to the whole thing, it would be the least Magneto could do, telling him what exactly the plan was.

_Still_, a tiny part of him thought as he prepared to be taken back to the boarding house, _Sometimes I am glad he is not telling me. I have the feeling it is very bad, und I vill not like it vhen he does._

His confused mood swings continued on through the evening, from his anger over his sketchbook being pilfered to his pouting at being shut out of Magneto's plans to his apprehension of what those plans might be. Pietro's sass-mouthed remarks didn't help, nor did Faulkner's silent, threatening glares.

"You could always break something," Fred suggested in a helpful voice when he saw Arial's thunderous expression after supper. "It's what I do when I get mad."

"_Danke schön, mein freund_, but I am afraid I von't be doing that. I outlet _mein_ anger through art, _und_ if there is any time I definitely need that sketchbook, it is now." Arial said quietly before heading upstairs and locking himself in his room. The need to draw continued to eat at him until he fell into a fitful, troubled sleep, plagued by nightmares.

* * *

The next morning, he got to school early enough to take the same hallway as before, hoping to catch sight of Chase and interrogate her about the sketchbook thief. Unfortunately, she must have known he would try something to that effect, because he didn't see her in the halls at all.

"_Scheiβe_!" he swore in a hiss, balling his fists and gnashing his teeth. Of all the luck! He prepared to simply continue on his way to class, when quite unexpectedly, he heard someone say his name.

"I met Arial yesterday, Jubilee. I forgot to tell you!"

It was Fauna's voice. He spun around and hid behind the corner of a nearby doorway, glancing out to catch sight of the blonde girl at her locker. But she wasn't alone; the other girl with the yellow jacket was with her again. Arial leaned a bit further out, his stomach doing odd flips. So her name was Jubilee?

"You what?!" Jubilee gasped, looking scandalized. "How could you forget? You should have told me! I could have met him and asked about this!"

She rummaged in her backpack and drew out something as familiar to Arial as the back of his hands. The sketchbook. _His_ sketchbook. His smile vanished in a second and his left eye started to twitch. _She_ was the thief?

"What is…" Fauna started to say, but her look of confusion quickly turned to one of shock and righteous fury. "Jubilee, is that his _sketchbook_?!"

The brunette girl flinched back, looking like a child caught with her hand in the cookie jar, and slowly, she nodded.

"Y-yes. He wrote his name in it…"

"Jubilation, I can't believe you! You don't just _take_ an artist's sketchbook an' go lookin' through it! It's like readin' someone's _diary_! What were you _thinkin_'?!"

Arial gave a silent cheer, making tiny fistpumps. _You go, zeige fraulein! Tell her how it is!_

"I…I don't know!" Jubilee exclaimed, "I'm sorry! I honestly didn't know what it was when I took it! I had just been looking for some answers when I found it, and the next thing I knew, I heard someone coming down the hall. I just stuck it in my jacket pocket without thinking! I was hoping I could return it to him if I had a chance; I really want to talk to Arial, and ask him questions."

Fauna began to visibly relax, and let out a sigh.

"I guess that's not too bad. Did ya look in the sketchbook at all?" She asked, and Jubilee's eyes went wide as she held the sketchbook up in front of her face. She mumbled something Arial couldn't quite hear above the clamor of the hallway, but he didn't need to know exactly what the words were. The guilty expression on her face said enough.

"_Jubilation_!" Fauna hissed, her ponytail flying and bouncing all over as she looked at her friend in renewed righteous outrage. But before her artistic lecture about sketchbook privacy could continue, both girls were whisked away by a teacher, warning them they had five minutes until the first bell. Taking heed, Arial left his hiding spot and rushed to get to first period, the wheels in his head turning.

Most of his anger about his sketchbook had faded, died down to a mild annoyance. And learning who the thief was…Well, this Jubilee _did_ seem sincerely sorry for what she had done. He was willing to forgive that, especially since it appeared she was already getting the indignant lecture about the matter from another artist, and one with super-strength at that! And most especially since she wanted to return his sketchbook to him. Maybe that was something bigger than both of them at work. Fate, destiny…the universe? _Something_. He needed his art supplies and a girl just happened to have the means to return the most important component to him? _And_ she wanted to get to know him?

Definitely something bigger was at work there, so he could afford to forgive her intrusive curiosity. Heck, he could even indulge it! _He_ could give her the opportunity to return his sketchbook and talk to him.

_Und I am going to do just that_. He told himself as he ripped a piece of paper out of a notebook to begin hastily writing.

The fact that she was really cute with the most adorable giggle he had ever heard had absolutely _nothing_ to do with it.

Absolutely nothing.

* * *

By the end of her lunch period, things did not seem to be improving with Katy at all. She was still upset and disappointed in Jubilee for taking the sketchbook and looking through it, and quite honestly, it seemed that disappointment was somehow contagious. It was making Jubilee miserable and bumming her out the more she thought about it.

_Why'd I even take the sketchbook in the first place? Why did I even look past the page saying it was private and personal? I should've stopped right then and there!_

The bell rang and she shuffled along after the rest of the students heading back to class, heaving an unhappy sigh.

_Nice going, Jubilation_, she thought, _You've ruined your chances of this Arial guy answering your questions before you even got a chance to talk to him. All because you couldn't keep your nose out of private business._

She was so wrapped up in her brooding thoughts she forgot to pay attention to where she was going and ran straight into someone walking in the opposite direction. She went down with a yelp, crashing to her side, and the person she ran into swore loudly.

"Ugh! Why don't you watch where you're going, Tard-Fashion?!" The other girl shrieked, smoothing down the front of her miniskirt. Jubilee looked up, just briefly enough to recall a face somewhere from pictures of the school's drill team, then looked down again, rubbing her side.

"S-sorry," she muttered, holding back her indignation, "It was an accident."

"So is your wardrobe!" The drill team girl snapped. "Or are you that color-blind that you think lavender goes with canary yellow?"

"I said I was sorry," she answered, glancing back up at the girl. For a second, it looked as though this drill team chick and a couple of her insta-clones that popped out of nowhere were ready for a fight, but they looked up at something behind Jubilee, paled, then turned and nearly ran in the direction they were originally going. She blinked in confusion, wondering if there was a teacher giving them the evil eye, when a strong hand suddenly gripped her arm and gently tugged her to her feet.

"Are you alright?" A male voice asked quietly, and she kept her eyes down, mortified that any guy had seen that.

"Y-yeah," she mumbled, "Thanks."

She lifted her arm free of his grip and took off running to get back to class, feeling her face heat up, flushing in shame and irritation.

"This day sucks," she whispered as she took her seat, "First Katy's upset, then those drill team girls…Augh, I wish I could just go back to the Institute right now. Just…go back, crawl into bed, and not come out forever."

The next bell rang as the last of the students came into the room, and her teacher wheeled out an overhead projector. There was a collective groan about having to take notes, and Jubilee reached into her jacket pocket to grab a pen, resigning herself to her fate. What her hand closed over however, felt like folded notebook paper.

"What the…?" she muttered, pulling it out and unfolding it, not recognizing the handwriting.

_"If it's answers you want, meet me at Peace Baptist Church on 3__rd__ and Elm tonight at 5 sharp. Come by yourself. Bring the sketchbook. We'll talk."_

Her heartbeat sped up, the excitement of the mystery returning. The note wasn't signed, but that didn't matter. She already knew who it was from.

_Should I write a note back?_ She wondered, but dismissed the idea almost at once. The only way she knew for sure she could get a note to Arial would be to ask Katy, Chase, Kurt or someone to take it to him, and that would be suspicious.

_Guess I'll just have to wait until five._

She glanced up at the clock on the wall, biting her lip to keep from groaning when she read one-twenty.

Five o'clock couldn't come fast enough.

* * *

"Hey, if anyone asks, I'm heading out for a little bit."

Katy glanced up as she walked past the couch, her expression suspicious. Not that Jubilee could totally blame her. Plus, she was doubtless still upset about the sketchbook.

"Where're ya off to?" The blonde girl asked. Jubilee shrugged noncommittally, doing her best to keep her expression neutral.

"Just feel like going out to walk for a little while," she answered, "I've had a pretty crummy day and I wanna be alone for a bit."

"Uh-huh," Katy said slowly, "So what's the backpack for? You expectin' this walk to turn into a hike?"

Darn her, she was good!

"Better purse than a purse," she replied, "Plus, my homework will be right there for me to work on if I stop somewhere and have some insane urge to actually fill out that "Sea Wolf" review packet."

"You, do homework?" A new voice scoffed as Ray entered the room, carrying his laptop. "Is that supposed to be a some kind of joke?"

"Hey, there's a first time for everything!" She retorted.

"Rrriiight," Ray chuckled, "I'll be sure to inform the crew of Ripley's Believe It Or Not."

"Ugh, I can't believe you! You've got no faith in me!" Jubilee groaned, stomping toward the door, "I'm outta here!"

Thankfully neither of them followed her out to the atrium, but once she got out there, she encountered a slightly bigger problem.

"And where are _you_ off to, squirt?"

She gulped, not wanting to turn and look Logan in the eye. Of all the bad luck…

"Out." She replied, slowly looking over her shoulder.

"_That_ much is obvious." He retorted. "What's with the backpack?"

"Uhh…homework?"

"Sure it is, Pinocchio, and my claws double as a violin."

"Really?"

"Don't get cute with me, Jubilee." He growled, suddenly up in her face and scowling. "That kind of weak cover story barely works with Jean and Kitty, and they can at least pull that lie off while acting confident, which sounds convincing. What about we skip the lying and you just tell me what you're up to?"

"It's…complicated." She muttered.

"This have anything to do with your little quest about Arial at all?" He demanded.

A sick knot twisted her stomach. She had hoped he would have forgotten about that. She opened her mouth to answer, wondering how she could possibly tell the truth _and_ convince him to still let her go. Luckily, within the next few seconds, she was spared the trouble of thinking on the fly, as Kitty shrieked from the kitchen.

"_Kurt_! You're gonna get fat! Quit hogging all of 'em!"

Logan froze, eyes going wide. He swung his head in the direction of the kitchen like a panther sensing an intruder, then he turned his stare on her again.

"We'll finish this conversation later." He declared with a sense of utter finality, before charging off toward the kitchen, yelling, "ELF! You better not be getting into the box of moon pies, or so help me—!"

"Thank God for the fuzzy blue boy's eating habits." Jubilee sighed before bolting out the front door as fast as her feet could carry her. She had little trouble after that, and made her way down to Peace Baptist, hurrying to make sure she got there at five. She was already pushing it close and she did _not_ want to lose her window of opportunity. The sun was beginning to set by the time she finally arrived, the last golden rays vanishing on the horizon, and she had to stop and consider the effect.

_It's almost twilight,_ she thought, _Did he pick the time on purpose because of that? Sounds like something a big, mysterious artist would do for some kind of dramatic effect._

She shook her head, took a second to try to compose herself, breathing deepening as she stared down the front doors to the church. Was it even unlocked? Should she really be doing this?

"No time to second-guess, Jubilee." She whispered out loud. "It's now or never."

She inhaled, grabbed the door handle, and pulled it open without any resistance.

"Well, that was easy."

She walked inside, wondering whether the door was always left unlocked, (if so, it was a very irresponsible church indeed,) or if Arial had beaten her there and opened it so she could come in. The ceiling rose high above her, the sanctuary's interior quite similar to what she had always envisioned for a grand cathedral, albeit quite smaller. Rows upon rows of pews stretched in front of her, leading up to a raised dais with an alter, offering tables, a choir section, several instruments, and a covered section that she could only guess was a baptismal pool. She swung her backpack around, holding it tight against her chest as she walked down the center aisle, looking around for some sign Arial was waiting for her. For a brief moment, she thought she heard something—a voice singing softly?—and she decided to take a chance and speak up.

"Hello?" she called, her voice echoing loudly in the empty hall. Nothing answered, save for the creaking of the rafters high overhead. She looked up, to the sides, toward the baptismal pool, behind her. Still there was nothing, and she tried again.

"Is anyone here?"

The rafters creaked again in response, and this time, Jubilee thought she heard the beams groaning in that certain way indicating they were holding weight on them somewhere. The sound was encouraging, so she tried one last time.

"I'm here…Arial. I, uh…It's me. You, uh…you asked me to meet you here…?" She called, feeling slightly awkward.

A few lights spaced between the windows had been casting a low illumination in the rapidly darkening church, but now they suddenly went out with a dying hum of electricity, throwing the sanctuary into twilight shadow. She swallowed, clutching the backpack tighter, the hair on the back of her neck rising.

"H-hello?" she squeaked, voice wavering.

Wind outside began to rattle the windows, and the hall filled with a cacophony of sound, like dozens of hands pounding the outside to be let in. She looked about wildly, her breath becoming short and panicked, taking a few steps back. Then the rafters started groaning again, adding to the discordant sounds. There was a low click somewhere dead ahead, and the canvas covering the baptismal pool lit up with a faint green glow. She froze, watching, waiting, and the canvas _began to move_.

It was just a low shudder at first, a rippling of fabric, but then it started bulging and stretching, a long, low, inhuman noise akin to a soft whine accompanying the motions, as though something—or someone—was trapped under the tarp and trying to get free. Gooseflesh raised along Jubilee's arms and she rapidly began moving backwards, heart racing with growing terror.

"Y-you should've stayed at the Institute, Jubilee," she whispered to herself as the thing under the tarp struggled violently, "I shouldn't even be here…"

The hair on the back of her neck rose more sharply this time, and she froze in place with a sudden realization.

She wasn't alone.

Without warning, a pair of hands suddenly closed over her arms, a rush of breath washing over her.

"_Guten Abend, fraulein_."

She shrieked, jumping and spinning around, pulling free of the grip and facing the owner of the phantasmal hands.

The green glow from the baptismal pool illuminated the shadows around a cherubic face framed by long, golden curls. She leaned back to get a better glimpse, and her fleeting thought that she had come face-to-face with an angel vanished. There were dark shadows around his menacing blue eyes, accentuating the grim lines of his mouth, and two huge octopus tentacles growing out of the shoulders of his trenchcoat writhed and thrashed at the air like striking snakes.

Her jaw dropped in a gasp as she started backing away, and he took a step forward, looming over her, octopus tentacles whipping the air around her angrily. The corners of his mouth turned down in a dangerous way as he stretched out his left hand and spoke again in a deadly soft voice.

"I believe you have something that belongs to me."


	6. Chapter 5: Questions, Answers, Questions

A/N: Once again, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. (If you don't know my deviantArt username to find my gallery, I'm on there as Yoruhoshi.) **WARNING: This fanfiction contains language, violence, and fancharacter/OCxCanon use! If you do not care for any of the above, this is not the fanfiction for you! NOTE: This fanfiction is the sequel to my other X-Men: Evolution fanfiction, "Tempest Fury." I highly recommend you read that one in its entirety before you start reading this one!** R&R please!

Also, another note. I've had a couple people ask me how Arial's name is properly pronounced, taking into account his accent and German heritage. I hope the little tidbit about that I slipped in this chapter clears up that confusion.

* * *

Chapter 5: Questions, Answers, Questions

"Hey, has anyone seen Jubilee?"

Katy and Ray both looked up slowly from their spots on the couch as Chase fidgeted, waiting for a response. They exchanged a long, slow look, evidently wondering how much they should let slip, and finally Katy spoke up.

"She was headin' out earlier. Didn't say where she was goin', though." She said.

"She took her backpack with her." Ray added before returning his attention to his laptop.

"Her backpack?" Chase repeated, puzzled. "Why in the world…?"

"Didn't ask." Ray replied, "Makes for an awesome Ripley's joke, though." Without so much as a glance up from the computer screen, he raised his hand and gave Katy a ringing high-five. Chase frowned, rubbing her chin pensively. This did _not _bode well, especially given the way Arial had reacted when she told him about his sketchbook. The last thing Jubilee should be doing would be running around Bayville and toting that sketchbook where anyone could see it, much less its furious owner, and yet Chase had a feeling she was doing just that. If Arial found out…

"Why, Chase? What's up?" Katy asked abruptly, and the redhead winced, hesitating. These new recruits were still so green, and none of them really knew about Arial and the situation with him. Nor was it her place to say anything; the Professor would tell them when he felt they were ready. So what could she say without overstepping her bounds?

"She and I were talking the other night and we never really finished the discussion. I was hoping to get a chance to talk to her again." She answered, which was true enough. "Plus…I dunno, I'm feeling kind of nervous right now. I hope she's okay."

"Aww, come on, Chase!" Ray chuckled. "It's Jubilee we're talking about! What's the worst that could happen?"

* * *

She sucked in a breath, heart pounding, terrified as the ghostly image of a drowned boy loomed in front of her…

And then, quite suddenly, her hand flew of its own accord and slapped him soundly across the face.

"_Ooww_!"

It was like she'd broken some magic spell. All at once, the sounds stopped, the sanctuary fell into a peaceful calm, and there was a soft splash as the baptismal pool fell still. The boy reeled back, rubbing the spot on his cheek and starting to pout.

"Vhat did you do that for?" He cried.

"I-I'm sorry! You were just in my face! It's a reflex!" Jubilee stammered, face going bright red. "W-what did you e-expect a girl to d-do?"

"Geez! I vas only hoping to scare you a little! I did not think you vould smack me!" He whined, one of his octopus tentacles snaking behind him to flip the switches on a light panel, bringing a soft, natural glow to the place once more. She grimaced, feeling slightly ridiculous. The light switch was behind her this whole time? The sanctuary lit up once more, she was finally able to get a proper look at the guy. Now that the green glow was gone and he no longer looked like a drowned ghost, she could easily say he was very cute, baby face and all.

"Why were you trying to scare me in the first place?" She asked slowly.

"You took my sketchbook!" He retorted, crossing his arms, and her face lit up.

"So…it really is _you_. It _is_ you, isn't it, Arial?"

He winced, shaking his head. "_Nein, nein, nein_. That's not how you say it."

"What?"

"_Mein_ name. It is Arial. _Ahh-ree-uhl_. Not _airy-ell_. I am not a mermaid princess."

"Are you sure?"

"Vhat do you mean, am I sure?"

"Just asking. I mean, you're pretty enough to be a girl."

"Eh heh heh heh, you are so funny," he said, tone dripping with sarcasm as he made a face. Then he turned serious once more and held out his hand again. "Give me the sketchbook."

"Now hold on a sec," Jubilee said, angling her backpack slightly to the side in an attempt to keep it out of his reach as best she could, "I came here because you agreed to answer some questions."

"_Ja_, I did." He consented. "_Und_ I have not forgotten that part of the arrangement. But I vould like _mein_ sketchbook back first."

"How do I know you'll answer my questions after you get it back?" She challenged, fixing him with a skeptical stare.

"You vill have to trust that I am a man of _mein_ vord."

"Trust the guy who tried to make a first impression by freaking me out? Oh, yeah. Yeah, that sounds _real_ smart."

He made a long-suffering sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose, one hand on his hip. "I vill admit, that vas stupid of me, _und verheizung_. But really, _fraulein_…If I really vanted to, I could have taken the sketchbook from you by force already. Believe me," he said, giving a shake of his shoulder tentacles, the ends of which were curling and uncurling slightly, "These have quite the reach. But I haven't, have I?"

Jubilee relaxed a little, eyes flicking from Arial's face to his tentacles and back again. Unfortunately, he was right. So, slowly and with a great deal of reluctance, she unzipped her backpack, retrieved the sketchbook, and held it out to him. Arial gave a tremendous sigh of relief, mumbled in low German, and pulled the sketchbook into his arms, clinging to it like it was a swimmer's life ring.

"_Danke schön, fraulein_." He exhaled quietly. "You have no idea vhat this means to me."

A long silence passed between them, and Jubilee hesitated to say anything, feeling it wasn't her place to start asking questions. But Arial must have picked up on her feelings, because he gave another light sigh and looked up, meeting her gaze.

"Now…you have questions for me? Vhat are you vanting to know?" He asked.

"Well, first…how did you find out about me wanting to talk to you? I only told two people." She said, planting her hands on her hips and raising an eyebrow. He winced and gave a weak, helpless shrug, hands tilting up and down like weights on an unbalanced scale.

"I vas…dropping eaves?" He said, a little unsure and struggling with the idiom. "You vere talking to Fauna in the hall this morning. I kind of overheard."

She blushed, caught somewhere between irritation and bashfulness.

"Okay, ignoring the fact you saw me get chewed out and _still_ decided to scare me," she said in mild annoyance, "Well…wait a minute…how did you get that note…?"

"A magician has to keep some of his secrets, _ja_?" He replied, offering her a crooked, mischievous smile. She frowned, then sucked in a breath as she remembered the mysterious guy who helped her to her feet on the way out of the cafeteria, the one she didn't see. She said nothing on that matter though; He could at least be allowed to keep that little part of his mysterious James Bond act or whatever he thought he was doing.

"Fine. Well…I guess I kind of just want to know why you left the Institute. What brought you there, why you fought with Kurt, why you left to join…" she stopped, hesitant to say Magneto's name, especially since she'd only ever heard mention of the guy, and finally settled for, "The Brotherhood."

He gave her a long, searching look, tentacles undulating slowly, his fingers drumming the surface of his sketchbook.

"Do you…do you hate us?"

He shook his head, golden curls bouncing.

"_Nein_. I thought I did at one point, but I vas just angry at the time. I do not think that I could have the strength _und _energy to truly hate someone. It is too draining."

"So…what was it?" She prompted.

"You realize you are practically asking for half my life story, _ja_?" He said.

"It's not even been a year, so how can that be half your life story?"

"I said 'practically.' The point I am trying to make is that it is very long _und_ ve may not have time to discuss it all," He explained, and when she opened her mouth to protest the point, he quickly barreled on, "Not that I am trying to get out of answering your questions, but you cannot be gone long from the mansion. The Professor _und_ the others vill vorry."

"Okay…" She said slowly, "I'll take what I can get. For now."

"Alright." He agreed with a nod. "First official question?"

"What brought you to the Institute?"

"_Herr_ Logan."

"Be serious!"

"I am."

"Well then, be more specific!" She huffed.

"Oh, _fine_!" He grumbled with a roll of his eyes, though a small, good-natured smile lingering on the edge of his mouth gave away his amusement. "_Girls_! If you vant me to be more specific, I vas brought to the Institute a couple of months after coming to America."

"So you haven't even been here that long!"

"_Steif_, though I _have_ visited before on many occasions. But vhen I came, I came vith the intention of staying. I have no vish right now to return to Germany."

"Why is that?"

"I vas running."

"From what?"

Something in his expression became dark, distant, haunted, and he frowned as he shook his head slowly.

"All I can tell you about that for now…is that I vas—I _am_—running from the monster that haunts _mein_ nightmares." He murmured. She didn't press him on the matter; something in his demeanor said _that_ particular topic was too personal, and she hadn't earned the right to hear it yet.

"Do you have another question?" He asked softly.

"Yeah…where were you staying before Logan found you?"

"Just on the street. Never stayed in one place for too long, it vas too risky. Sometimes I vould sleep in parks, using _mein_ backpack for a pillow."

"…you're joking. You're trying to pull one over on me."

"_Nein_, I'm serious." He said, giving her a look.

"Oh…oh my god…" She whispered, at a loss for words. "Arial, I'm…I'm sorry…"

"If you are quite done," he said with an irritated sigh, "I think ve should stop here for now. Ve each need to be getting back."

"But…but! You only answered two of my questions!" She protested.

"To be fair, you have technically asked me more than just two, _und_ I have answered most of them. Besides, I am villing to rendezvous vith you _und_ answer more questions again some other time." Arial replied, and Jubilee hesitated. More than anything, she wanted to press the matter, to not let him leave until he had answered all her questions. But he was right again, much as she was loathe to admit it. They _did_ have to get back. Besides, he had just put a lot on her mind that she needed to think about.

"Okay…but you've got to promise me we'll meet up again for more questions soon!" She said firmly.

"I promise you that ve vill, _fraulein_." He said, heading for the door.

"Wait!" She blurted out, desperately wishing she could run to catch up but finding she couldn't move a muscle, "How will I find you?"

"You von't, Jubilee," he answered with a slow, calm smile, "I'll find you."

* * *

They watched as the tunnel opened up into a strange area with rolling hills, a quiet, lazy river, and trees. It was far from an ordinary country scene, however. The river was bright malachite green, the hills were a magenta color with a texture like woven baskets, the sky was obscured by a gray mist, and the trees were the red-brown of dried blood, gnarled and twisting bare branches into the sky, the semblance of screaming human faces a ghostly image in the knotted trunks.

"Y'know," Pietro remarked, crossing his arms as he took it all in, "I get the feeling there's some Dante's Inferno anime out there, and Fifi here found it."

As if in response to the quip, the trees began to creak and moan around them, giving rise to an eerie, hair-raising chorus.

"Yo, watch it!" Todd hissed, "Faulkner can still hear us, a-and I don't think he likes that nickname!"

"Remarkably astute of you to notice, Mr. Tolansky!" Faulkner's voice echoed in the misty sky, an undeniable note of glee in his tone. Lance and Pietro immediately rolled their eyes, and Todd leapt onto Fred's back for safety. "Now before I get really mad, is there anything, perhaps, that you would like to say to me, Maximoff?"

Lance threw his white-haired teammate a pointed look, mouthing the words, "Don't say anything stupid," and as normal, went ignored.

"Yeah, mindfreak!" Pietro shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth as he sneered up at the unseen sky. "You call this a training session? What is this, Care-A-Lot on crack? Why don't you give us a _challenge_?"

"Like that." Lance muttered.

The ground and the scene around them warped, starting to change to fit Faulkner's irritation, and Pietro took to zipping around in short sprints from spot to spot. He wasn't sure how realistic the new boy's illusions were, but constantly running broke away any sense of vertigo he might have suffered. The others weren't so lucky though, and they each looked as though they were fighting to keep their balance. Slowly everything turned a dark gray, almost as though they were in a graveyard without headstones, and only the Dante trees from the original illusion remained. And then those also changed, as they began to move, ripping their roots free of the false ground and shuffling forward.

"You just _had_ to tick him off, didn't you?" Lance growled, spreading his hands to the side.

"I-I-I don't like this!" Todd yelped.

"Me neither," Fred added, giving the closest of the Dante trees a death glare and cracking his knuckles, "Let's smash these stupid plants!"

And with that, he broke into a charge, tackling the tree, a screaming Todd still clinging to his back. Lance continued to growl under his breath, and turned to attacking the trees nearest him, though his tremors were hardly contained or focused, and therefore caused the others to constantly lose their balance. Pietro hardly took notice beyond trying to stay upright. At least this was close to a real training session, even if the Dante trees were a lame threat. He raced in circles around one of them, slowing down only at random intervals to land a few punches on it at a time.

After all, why should Arial be the only one to get any training?

The tree let out a shriek of anger, twisting and swinging its arm-like branches in an attempt to smack him. He ducked out of the way of the first two blows, but the third went lower and collided with his abs, knocking him off his feet with a gasp. Either Faulkner was sneaking around to hit a few of them at a time, undetected, or else his illusions were really that strong. Pietro got to his feet with a grimace, the stinging in his midriff quickly fading. He highly doubted it was the latter.

"Oh, cute. Real cute." He huffed. "Now try hitting _this_!"

He sped off, heading in a huge loop, tilting his entire frame into the ring he ran, leaning further and further forward. With each stride of his legs he picked up more speed, his momentum knocking most of the Dante trees back as he rounded off and charged straight for the one he was fighting.

Stupid perfect octopus-boy with his stupid perfect powers! Why should _he_ be the only one to get any training? It wasn't like the rest of them were useless just because their powers weren't in Arial's particular class!

The tree went down in a spectacular blur of fists and one final kick, letting out a tiny shriek and slowly vanishing.

"_Vas ist das_?"

The scene faded abruptly, leaving all the Brotherhood boys standing around in the backyard, Faulkner standing a good distance away from the others and nursing his jaw, which was turning a blotchy black and purple. They all turned to see Arial approaching them, a look of mild curiosity on his face and a sketchbook tucked under his arm.

"Hey, where were you, Lavig?" Lance demanded, stomping over to the blonde boy and looking furious. "What were you doing?"

"I vas out for a valk, _mother_," Arial replied in a deceptively relaxed tone of sarcasm, not backing down, "_Und_ I asked first."

"We were having our own training session!" Fred exclaimed, thrilled to be sharing this with his friend.

"After all, it may benefit us." Faulkner added coolly, examining his nails in poorly affected boredom. "If one of us trains, why shouldn't we all?"

Arial was beginning to frown at the remark when Fred spoke up again, turning a slightly hurt look on the smaller boy.

"We were hoping you'd train with us." He mumbled, looking like a wounded puppy, and that did it in for Pietro.

"Speak for yourself, wide load!" He snapped, storming past the others in a fury. He made his way inside, heading for his room, but didn't make it past the landing before there was a sharp yank on his shirt collar and he was hauled off his feet, gagging slightly, to stare his furious rival in the face. For a brief moment, as his mind raced back to the events of a few months ago when Arial nearly strangled him to death, Pietro realized he was terrified.

"You vant to tell me what your problem is?" Arial demanded quietly. He snarled and thrashed about, knocking the German boy's hold on him loose.

"I don't have to tell you anything, sushi-boy!" He shot back. "Why don't you go prance around with the human garbage disposal and warts-for-brains? I'm sure Fifi would love to set you guys up with some happy little sunshiney unicorn land for you to play perfect pretty princess in!"

There was a pause as Arial tightened his grip again and Pietro went rigid, preparing to bolt. But then something quite unexpected happened. As they stared each other down, Arial's eyes warped, changing, losing their essence of humanity. One moment they were that furious dark blue, the next, his entire eyeballs went a mottled burnt-orange, save for his pupils, which flattened into long, horizontal bars. As Pietro watched in shock, those golden-blonde eyebrows raised, the orange faded back into blue, human eyes, and Arial gave him a flat look.

"Really? _That_ is the best you've got right now?" He asked, unimpressed. "I thought you vere actually going to try _und_ make me _mad_."

Slowly, he set Pietro down and gently released his shirt, walking past him, cradling the sketchbook in his arms.

" 'Perfect pretty princess?' Really? _Really_?" Arial repeated, shaking his head in utter disbelief before disappearing into his room. Pietro watched in silence, instincts warring against a healthy fear.

What had just happened? He'd never seen such…_animalistic_ traits surface in Arial in the short time he'd known the guy. Sure, the stupid sunshine-daisy had his temper, but that wasn't part of the whole…octopus thing; octopi were passive by nature. But they _did_ have mottled eyes with horizontal pupils.

So was Arial continuing to mutate somehow?

He pulled out his cell phone, preparing to call his father about what he had witness, but couldn't force his hand to dial the number. Magneto would _want_ to know if Arial "evolved" any further. And that was the last thing Pietro wanted to call his father over, his star pupil becoming even better.

Carefully, he shut the cell phone, returning it to his pocket.

Magneto could find out this one on his own.


	7. Chapter 6: Pressure Zone

**A/N: As usual, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. (If you don't know my deviantArt username to find my gallery, I'm on there as Yoruhoshi.) Also, a big thanks to Fauna's creator for helping me decide the title of this chapter from the pool of suggestions I got from my dA readers. NOTE: This fanfiction is the sequel to my other X-Men: Evolution fanfiction, "Tempest Fury." I highly recommend you read that one in its entirety before you start reading this one! R&R please!**

* * *

Chapter 6: Pressure Zone

A strange sort of thrilling sensation continued to bubble in Jubilee's stomach after she returned to the Institute. She had expected the feeling to go away upon meeting and talking to Arial, but for some reason it didn't; if anything, their meeting only heightened the feeling. She was beginning to solve the mystery, bit by little bit! Not to mention…what if she was actually _helping_ Arial by getting him to open up and talk to her?

She tried to scoff the idea off, tell herself she was being ridiculous, but maybe it _was_ a real possibility. After all, Arial was willing to talk, however reluctantly, and maybe that was what he needed. Maybe, just maybe, he might change his mind and return to the Institute after a while, make amends with everyone, and then the tension surrounding the whole issue would die down.

"Yeah right, Jubilation," she snorted, tossing her armadillo stuffie up in the air and catching it, "And maybe you'll get a plaque with your name on it in the Xavier Institute Hall of Famous Mutants. 'The Chick Who Brought Back Arial.' I can see it now."

She continued tossing the armadillo up and down, doing her best to dismiss her delusions of grandeur, a task that was fast proving difficult with her thrill of meeting the elusive young artist. After several minutes, someone knocked on her door several times, causing her to fumble the stuffed animal.

"Aww, crap!" She groaned. "Come in!"

The door slowly creaked open to admit four solemn-faced figures, who entered her room and measured her with calculating looks.

"Uh-oh…is this the interrogation committee?" She asked, eyes darting from Jean to Katy to Chase to Kitty and then back to Jean.

"Jubilee, we're not here to interrogate you," Jean began.

"—we just want to know where you like, ran off to earlier," Kitty jumped in, "And with your backpack? That's not like you at all."

"I'm surprised you just didn't read my mind right away." She remarked, picking up the armadillo stuffie and stroking its ears.

"Don't tempt me." Jean said dryly. "We _want_ to give you the opportunity to talk first, to tell us. Is everything okay? Are you alright?"

"What, are you kidding me?" She burst out, the thrilling sensation reaching boiling point without warning, her face splitting into a huge smile. "Everything. Is. Awesome."

The other four exchanged several startled looks before all eyes turned to Chase, who grimaced and nodded.

"She's telling the truth, girls." She confirmed.

"Exactly!" Jubilee said cheerfully, "I'm working on something, something _big_! But it's a surprise, so no peeking or anything until I'm positive it's ready!"

Jean and Kitty just frowned, but Chase and Katy were struggling to keep their faces neutral, which put her on a wary edge. They both already knew about her interest in Arial's story; if they didn't somehow already know what she had been up to, they probably suspected it. And with a glance at Katy, Jubilee could tell she and Chase weren't about to leave anytime soon.

"Well," Kitty said uncertainly, "Okay. If you're sure."

Jean frowned but said nothing, and she left the room, Kitty on her heels. There was a long, awkward pause, and the three girls remaining looked back and forth between each other. At last, Jubilee let out a long sigh, squeezing her armadillo tightly, and patted the comforter on her bed.

"You might as well sit down." She said in exasperation.

"Okay, Jubilation," Katy began, "Spill it, an' be honest."

"You say that like I'm under oath."

"With me here, you might as well be." Chase pointed out. "So tell us the truth. Where did you go earlier?"

She took a deep breath, feeling the hair raise on the back of her neck, her heart pounding, a twisting knot building in her stomach.

"I went out to the Peace Baptist Church on 3rd and Elm," she replied, refusing to meet their eyes, "Because I was passed a note. Arial somehow found out that I had his sketchbook, so I went to return it to him."

"_What?!_" Chase practically squawked.

"You returned his sketchbook to him?" Katy said, eyebrows raising, and when Jubilee nodded, she smiled in approval. "Good girl!"

"What? No, no!" Chase protested. "You should have told someone! That wasn't safe, Jubilee. You could have gotten hurt!"

The two turned and looked at her, each raising a suspicious eyebrow.

"Uh…yeah, okay _Mom_." Jubilee said. "Talking to strangers is bad. But last I checked, Arial used to live here too."

"Yes, and I still consider him a friend—"

"Then why are you wigging out?"

"But you guys don't know what Arial used to be like, versus what he's like now."

"Are you sayin' you do?" Katy asked skeptically.

"Maybe I do, maybe I don't," Chase admitted, cheeks going slightly pink, "But I do know that the old Arial rarely made open threats or talked about how dangerous he was. Not to mention he didn't dress like a quasi-Goth reject biker."

"Hey, I think the leather jacket adds to his masculinity," Jubilee declared, "What with that baby face and long princess hair he's got, he probably needs it."

"The point is," Chase pressed on, "Switching sides and living with the Brotherhood has changed Arial. And I'm not so sure it's for the better. Just running off to meet up with him like that isn't safe, Jubilation."

"Well, I went this time and came back just fine, didn't I?" She said, feeling slightly angry, an indignant edge to her tone. "Sure, Arial tried to scare me a little, but that was just because I took his sketchbook when I should have just let it be."

"You learned your lesson well, young padawan." Katy remarked with a pleased smile.

"I did, and I told him that. We talked a little, and then he had to leave. He already said he's willing to meet up again sometime, to answer some of my questions." Jubilee said, crossing her arms at Chase.

"But it may not be safe." The redhead insisted.

"Chase, Arial was your friend, right?" She asked. "Wouldn't you rather he come back here to stay?"

"Well…yes, but…"

"Then maybe we have to hear his side of the story first, before he'll come back."

There was a very long silence in which none of them said a word, then at length Chase let out a sigh of defeat.

"I hope you're right, sparky. For _all_ our sakes."

That largely ended the discussion, and in a moment the two left. Jubilee resorted to writing down a list of possible questions she wanted to ask Arial when they next talked, trying to keep her mind off of what Chase had said. How could Arial be any more dangerous than the next mutant? Besides, Brotherhood status or not, something about the blonde boy just didn't strike her as, well…unsafe. The way he had been so happy at the return of his sketchbook, it was like watching a little boy being reunited with his lost puppy. He just seemed too vulnerable, too…human.

She paused while writing the list, picked up the armadillo stuffie, and studied its plush face.

"Arial's a nice guy, Pickles. I just know he is," she whispered, "He just needs to remember it too."  
She continued to work on the list until late at night, editing and revising most of the questions and scrapping others entirely. It was a bit ironic really, as she had never put in that much effort before with school and homework. But then again, perhaps she was just invested enough in solving this mystery that she was willing to put in that extra effort. Eventually, her stomach gave a low growl and she tiptoed downstairs to the kitchen, intent on sneaking a late-night snack. But once she got in there, she realized she wasn't the only one with that idea.

"You should be in bed by now, squirt," Logan remarked without looking up from the huge sandwich he was making, "Not pokin' around for food."

"Just getting a slightly-before-midnight snack." She explained, slipping past him to take a look in the fridge. He didn't say anything at first, but started to sniff the air in his distinctly animal way. She paid little attention to the mannerism, until he made an unexpected remark.

"How was your visit with Arial?"

She fumbled and nearly dropped the jug of milk and bottle of chocolate syrup she'd been going for, heart hammering in panic.

"V-visit with who? I-I don't know what you're—"

"Give it up, half-pint," he sighed in exasperation, "I know you went, as if your sneakin' around earlier wasn't enough of a clue. Goldilocks has a very unique scent; smell of octopus ain't one you forget any time soon."

She bit her lip furiously. Heightened sense of smell; she'd have to remember that the next time she tried to hide anything from him.

"Come on, Jubilee," he said, tossing her a look as he slapped a generous portion of mayonnaise on his sandwich, "Tell me what happened."

She fidgeted, setting the milk and syrup on the counter, not wanting to meet his eyes. The last thing she wanted was for anyone else to find out where she had gone and end up being forbidden from trying to talk to Arial again. She was so close to solving the mystery of the incident! Eventually though, Logan's presence won out and she resigned herself to confessing to him.

"Well, he wanted his sketchbook back, because I kind of found it and took it on accident. So I met up with him and gave it back." She said somewhat lamely.

"And?" He prompted.

"We kind of talked, a little bit," she replied, glancing up at him hesitantly, "I tried to ask him some questions, but we didn't get too far before he kinda ran out on me."

"Hmm." Was the only response she got. She hesitated, unnerved by Logan's silence, then threw out something she hoped would get him talking.

"Arial said you brought him to the Institute." She said in what she hoped was a cheery voice, but he only gave a nod of confirmation, nothing more. She stayed quiet, unsure of what she was doing wrong, all the while getting the strong impression there was something Logan was waiting for her to ask. After a couple moments of hard thinking, it clicked, and she turned to face him completely.

"Why do Chase and all the others say Arial's dangerous?" She asked. "They treat him like he's a threat whenever I bring him up, but it's not like he's any more dangerous than any other mutant, right?" When he gave her a long look, clearly struggling with what to say, she added, "He's like a big puppy under the tough guy James Dean act. Even if he is with those Brotherhood guys right now, he just doesn't seem like a bad person, Wolverine. I just don't get that vibe from him."

"You aren't wrong on that, kid," He began slowly. "Arial's no more dangerous than any of the rest of you. Not that he's anywhere near _my_ level of dangerous. None of ya are. But that's not the point. Thing is, Arial's troubled. He's got a lot of things in his recent past, a lot of personal demons to deal with. He's confused. We figure that's how Magneto talked him into joining the Brotherhood. Still, can't say I think Goldilocks has it in him to be the kind of little anti-human soldier Magneto wants."

Suddenly Logan's expression became clouded as he frowned in puzzlement, looking slightly off to the side. "Although…" he murmured, as though recalling something he'd forgotten.

"What?" She asked.

"Ahh, it's nothing," He answered, shaking his head. His tone was nonchalant enough, but there was a hardness in his expression that made Jubilee think twice about asking what "nothing" was.

"Oh. Okay…" she murmured, looking away and trying to ignore a sudden sense of worry building in the back of her mind. Magneto was trying to turn the Brotherhood boys and Arial into human-hating brain-washed machines? And what was that hesitation on Logan's part that he insisted was "nothing?" Logan gave her a small, sympathetic smile, and walked over to a cabinet, retrieving a pair of glassed and a spoon.

"Don't stress about it, squirt," he remarked, setting the glasses down on the table and pouring the milk, "And try not to rush things with Arial, okay?"

"What?!" She spluttered. "What does _that_ mean?!"

"Ask him too many questions right off the bat, he's gonna be skittish," Logan explained, emptying a good amount of chocolate syrup into one of the glasses of milk before passing the syrup bottle to her, "Go slow and easy with it. Don't rush things, and don't pressure him. You'll get a better response that way."

"If you say so." She muttered, squeezing syrup into her milk and snatching the spoon. As she stirred up the chocolate milk, she considered Logan's words, going over them in her mind. Really, it didn't sound like socializing-with-the-anti-social tips so much as early relationship advice or boyfriend-hunting hints.

"Trust me, kiddo." He insisted before swiping the spoon from her. "I know what I'm talking about. Now take the cookies or whatever else you came down here to get, and haul your butt back up to bed."

She tossed him a mischievous grin, bounced over to one of the cabinets, snatched a box of mint chocolate cookies, and fled the kitchen before he could protest, grabbing her chocolate milk as she sped past the table. The last glimpse of the kitchen she caught was a hurried look over her shoulder, the sight of Ororo dashing inside, and she grinned. In her opinion, Logan and Ororo _totally_ had the hots for each other, even if they didn't realize or wouldn't admit it.

Oh, well. They'd figure out they liked each other sooner or later.

She went back to her room and flopped onto her bed. She picked up a notebook as she ate, and began doodling, feeling rather accomplished and optimistic.

* * *

Logan was preparing to bite into his over-sized, sloppy tower of a sandwich when Ororo burst into the kitchen, face white as a sheet. He froze in place, frowning.

"Don't like that look of yours, Storm. What's going on?"

"Logan, you have to come, and quickly!" She exclaimed, seizing his arm and pulling. "It's Charles!"

"Chuck?" He asked, dropping the sandwich back on his plate without a second thought. "What happened?"

"He's had another nightmare." Was all she answered as they rushed to his room, and Logan gave a soft growl. The Professor had never really been given to dreams for as long as he'd known the man, and now Charles had had two unsettling dreams in less than three weeks? There was something about it all that had him on the edge, and since there weren't really any other mutants whose telepathic abilities could truly challenge Charles, that ruled out any foul play on a psychic level. This left him to the conclusion that there was something…supernatural or what-have-you involved in these dreams, and that grated on his heightened nerves. He couldn't take down the supernatural with his bare hands.

"Logan, Charles' psychic abilities could just be growing," Ororo said tentatively as they reached the room, as much to ease her own worry as his. She knew what he thought, and as usual, had tried to come up with a more optimistic and logical counter-argument. The professor looked up as they walked in, eyes tired and marked by dark rings, a hand pressed wearily to his forehead.

"Doesn't explain the nightmares." Logan grunted, striding over to the bed. "What happened, Chuck?"

Charles shook his head slowly, expression distant. "It was…incredibly similar to my last nightmare." He murmured.

"Arial again?" Logan asked.

"Not just Arial this time," came the answer, "The rest of the children were there too, including the Brotherhood."

"You think this dream means they're all involved in Arial's problem?"

"I believe it means they are all connected, however loosely or otherwise. I fear it is a sign of something yet to come, some sort of trial for Arial, and…it affects all of us."

"And…the thorns?" Ororo asked, worried.

"Yes," he said quietly, "The shadow-thorns were present in this dream as well. And I think…I believe I may know now who creates them."

"Someone _created_ those?" Logan said in disbelief. "Who?"

"This mutant calls himself Blackthorn, I believe, but that is hardly his real name," the professor replied, "I have my suspicions as to his true identity, but I cannot confirm them unless—"

"Cerebro?" Ororo suggested.

"I have to try."

" 'Try?'" Logan echoed.

"I'll need to throw Cerebro's range out farther than normal. I'll have to use it at full power," Charles explained as Logan helped him out of bed and into his wheelchair, "If my suspicions are accurate. But it is still entirely possibly that Cerebro will drain power from the mansion and I will have done so in vain."

"Honestly, Charles," Logan snorted, "You're too modest for the most powerful telepath on the planet."

The professor offered him a weak smile but said nothing as he led them down to the lower levels of the mansion, which were eerily quiet as ever. They kept right on the end of his wheelchair, neither determined to let him out of their sights under the current circumstances. Not even when the doors to the Cerebro room opened did they let up, and followed him inside, standing like silent sentries keeping guard of their guiding star.

"So, Cerebro at full power…" Logan murmured, "How big of a scan we talkin' here?"

"Global," the professor answered grimly, lifting the metal, helmet-like device and slowly lowering it onto his head. "Though if my hunch is correct, then that will be most unnecessary."

"What hunch?" Asked Ororo softly.

"I believe the answers to my nightmares—and the identity of this 'Blackthorn'—lie in Dresden."

"Germany." Logan said to Ororo, comprehension dawning on both their faces. Suddenly they had an all-too-clear idea of what the professor's hunch was, and it was a notion that sent icy fingers of dread down their spines.

* * *

**A/N: Me again. Something that always bothered me about X-Men: Evolution is the lack of Jubilee, and most particularly the lack of a father-daughter relationship between her and Wolverine. It's one of my favorite dynamics about the two, so I'm trying to incorporate a tiny bit of that in here. Also, I'm sorry if anyone is upset with how I'm writing Jubilee; she didn't get much screentime in Evo and had hardly any speaking lines at all, so I'm trying to develop her character, and I'm basing a lot of it off how I remember her from the comics and the X-Men Animated Series cartoon. (And she suddenly has a stuffed armadillo named Pickles. Don't ask me why, I'm not quite sure how that happened.) Also, I finally got back to the other key plot point I've mentioned before, concerning the nightmares Professor X is starting to have. (Geez, it's only taken me five chapters since the prologue.) Still, I'm going to try a bit harder to keep that focus in here as well. I don't want to slack off on it.**


	8. Chapter 7:Boomzerker MatchmakingServices

**A/N: Sorry this took forever to finish, you guys! As usual, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. (If you don't know my deviantArt username to find my gallery, I'm on there as Yoruhoshi.) NOTE: This fanfiction is the sequel to my other X-Men: Evolution fanfiction, "Tempest Fury." I highly recommend you read that one in its entirety before you start reading this one! R&R please!**

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Chapter 7: Boomzerker Matchmaking Services

Tabitha "Boom-Boom" Smith wasn't necessarily what anybody would call a romantic, but she had the uncanny ability to predict how just about any relationship would end up like. She called it one of her many gifts, and the fleeting thought of opening a matchmaking service as an adult had crossed her mind at least more than once. She often boasted of this gift of hers to the Brotherhood boys, but none of them were ever interested in seeing her use this talent, much less believe it was even real. Thus she rarely had the opportunity to show it off to anyone outside of school, and became positive she would never be able to put it to work while at the boarding house. But when Arial had returned the previous evening in a chipper mood that persisted into the next morning, Tabitha could smell the sweet fragrance of opportunity at the door.

"Why so bouncy this morning, Goldilocks?" She asked when she walked into the kitchen and he offered to make her breakfast.

"Bouncy?" Arial said, puzzled. "I am not sure vhat you mean, Tabby. I am the same vay I am every morning."

She could give him that; he was very good at affecting his more neutral face when he needed to. But there were still telltale signs that gave him away. A spring to his step, the impeccably combed hair, the bright shine in his eyes, the ghost of a smile lurking at the corners of his mouth. All of those were uncharacteristic of him normally. In an instant, she knew what had happened: Arial had met a girl—a really, really cute girl—last night.

"Sooo…what's her name?" She asked.

Arial halted in mid-stride, blinking. "Vhat is whose name?" He asked, tone far too innocent to be legit. She chuckled, poking his ribs repeatedly, making him squirm and yelp.

"The _girl_ you met last night, Ari!"

"Sshhh!" He hissed, eyes popping wide open as he clamped a hand over her mouth. "Don't say that so loud! I do _not_ vant the other guys knowing!"

She struggled her way free of his grip, glaring. "Ugh, at least warn a girl next time before you do that! And why don't you want them finding out?"

"Two reasons," he answered dryly, "_Und_ their names are Todd _und_ Pietro."

"Fair enough," she said with a shrug, "But you could at least tell me anyway."

"_Und_ vhy vould I vant to share a secret that big vith a gossip hound?"

"Well, if you don't tell me, I'll wind up finding out one way or another."

"Oh, really?"

"Yes, really. I'm a woman, I've got my ways."

At this, Arial rolled his eyes and snorted, returning his attention to the breakfast he was preparing. Tabitha would have pursued the matter, had Fred not come into the kitchen a second later. Instead, she sat down at the table, chewing pensively at a doughnut she'd snuck behind their backs. She was going to find out who this girl was, no matter what she had to do, and once she did, she was going to give Arial some serious tips and advice about impressing young women.

They all loaded up shortly into Lance's Jeep, heading to school, and Arial still looked exceptionally bright and bouncy. The wheels in Tabitha's head spun, quickly formulating a plot, a plot she set in motion the second they arrived at school and started to head inside. She made a very loud display to the boys, pretending to whine about her platform shoes, saying the heels on them needed her attention because they weren't adjusted right. Predictably, they all rolled their eyes, muttered unsavory comments under their breath, and tried to get inside a little more quickly than before.

"Typical males." She declared with a sly smile. She waited for a moment, and then darted inside, looking around for Arial. There he was, just ahead, and heading down a different hallway than she was used to seeing him take. Oh, her guess was totally right! He was _so_ going to see this girl! She trotted along behind him, careful to keep a good space between them so he wouldn't catch on. They didn't make more than two turns before Arial stopped near a classroom, where Kitty, Jubilee, Katy, and Chase were all discussing something.

"—still don't see why it's just Bea—I mean, Dr. McCoy going with Tiras on this mission! Come _on_, I mean, _some_ of us might like to take a three-day weekend in Japan!" Kitty pouted loudly.

"I heard the Professor say there was a special reason for it." Katy replied.

"Yeah, there probably is." Chase added.

"Hey, like, why don't we ask him when we get back this afternoon? Maybe he'll tell us!" Kitty suggested. "I hate being in the dark!"

"Sounds like a plan to me!" Katy said happily.

"Alright! See you at lunch!" Kitty laughed, waving to the other three before taking off down the hall to catch up with a grumbling Rogue. Katy then started up a conversation with Chase, and in that moment, Jubilee looked over her shoulder, and her gaze fell on Arial, eyes going huge. Arial straightened at once, and Jubilee smiled, giving him a tiny wave and mouthing a silent greeting. He gave a sharp nod, saluted her with two fingers, then spun on his heel and walked back the way he had come. Tabitha ducked behind another girl's textbook until he had passed by, then emerged to head back to class, trying not to chuckle like a complete maniac.

So, Arial met Jubilee, did he? And it seemed there was already potential _chemistry_ there! Now to just spark off that little powder keg the right way…

* * *

"Hey, sparky. Can I borrow a pen?"

Ray looked up as Tabitha sauntered over to him, a notepad with bright purple paper in hand, and frowned slightly. Tabitha Smith was confusing even at the best of times, and a lot of what she did—like up and leaving the Institute to go live with the Brotherhood—didn't always make sense.

"I don't have any gel pens," he said with a pointed grimace at the lavender notepad, "Will a regular black ballpoint pen work?"

"You're a lifesaver, Ray-Ray!" Tabitha exclaimed, snatching the pen out of his hand. He gave her a flat look before shrugging and shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Yeah, you're welcome." He muttered.

"Good, so would the words 'scenic' and 'rendezvous' be a bad combination to use in a sentence?" She asked with a clicking snap of her over-glossed nails. "Come on, work with me, here!"

"What are you even doing?" He demanded, peering over her shoulder to watch as she started writing.

"Making copies of a note to give to the lucky couple-to-be."

"…do I even _want_ to know—"

"Ray, I realize this is hard to understand, but the Big Guys Upstairs have granted me with a totally envious and sweet god-like power."

"Tabs, I hate to break it to you, but if you hand 'em a detonator switch, a _two-year-old _can blow something up."

"I'm talking about my knack! You know, how I can make predictions about couples? I'm like Gwenyth Paltrow in that one movie based off some Jane Austen book!" Tabitha exclaimed, grinning like a fox. Ray groaned. Not _this_ again! No matter how many times anyone argued that there had yet been no incontestable proof of her talent, she always boasted of it to any person with ears.

"So what exactly are—"

"Oh, I'm so glad you asked! See, here's the problem, Ray-Ray: Arial's been all perky and happy since he met Jubilee last night, and I'm willing to bet she's been the same way. Am I right?"

"Wait, what? How—"

"Of course I'm right!" She answered her own question, preening slightly. "Now, those two have a _ton_ of potential chemistry, but there's not even a mild little flame or anything between them yet. So I am going to help them along a little."

"I know Kurt's already told you this once or twice, but you're crazy." Ray declared, folding his arms. Tabitha paused in her writing so as to stare him in the eye, the expression of someone who had just been given a challenge forming on her face.

"Oh, does Mr. Doubting Thomas want proof?"

"Tabitha, I never said—"

"Come here!" She huffed, grabbing him by an arm and pulling, and he allowed her to drag him closer to the bleachers, where she pointed out two figures talking. "See that?"

"What am I supposed to be seeing?" He asked with a huge sigh, humoring her.

"Them, right there! Chase Owens and Todd Tolansky!"

Ray glanced again at the bleachers. Sure enough, Chase Owens was seated on the lower bleachers, having been ousted in a round of dodgeball, and Todd Tolansky was hovering nearby, acting like he was trying to get her attention. Ray shrugged.

"So what?"

"There it is. Your proof."

"Owens and Tolansky?" He asked, scrunching up his nose in confusion.

"Oh, yeah. Those two are gonna take forever to fess up, but when they finally do, they're gonna be glued at the hip." She declared confidently. "See, Todd's trying to nose some sympathy out of Chase right now, because he got his butt handed to him when the guys were training last night."

"Training?" Ray repeated. Something about that set off a warning bell in his head, one he couldn't quite explain. He would have to remember that later. It sounded like the sort of thing Professor X would want to hear.

"And if that's not proof enough," Tabitha went on, hardly having registered that he spoke a word, "Just you watch and see. When the Sadie Hawkins dance rolls around, Tiras is totally gonna ask out Sam."

"How would you know that?" Ray asked in exasperation. "Tiras hardly talks to anyone, let alone the Cannonball."

"I'm a woman, I've got my ways."

"Hmm…I'm guessing I should withhold my comment."

"Darn right, you'd better! Now sit down and help me figure out what these notes should say. We've got a couple to set up!"

"Wait, 'we?' Since when was I—"

"Since I said so," she answered, swelling with pride, "You're my matchmaking partner-in-crime, sparky."

"I'm thrilled." He said dryly.

"We need a name for us for this venture. What about…Berzoom-Boom Dating Services?" She suggested, and when Ray made a sharp wince, she shrugged, smiling, and continued, "Ahh, you're right. It sounded lame, anyway. How about…hmm…"

"Boomzerker Matchmaking Services?" He said half-heartedly, wearily rubbing his forehead. If he had to take medicine for a headache by the end of the day, she was getting the blame.

"Perfect!" She exclaimed in a gasp. "Now, here! You write this note…"

* * *

The final bell rang, and the doors of Bayville High burst open like a floodgate, the students flocking to the sound of freedom. As usual there was a mad rush to get to the buses and the parking lot, but for once not everyone was racing toward their cars. Tabitha waited by one of the side entrances, watching a tree several yards ahead, a normal hangout place for some cliques in the school. In a few moments, a girl with long dark hair in a canary yellow jacket approached the tree, backpack dangling in one hand, a note clutched tightly in the other.

"G-got it to her." A voice panted behind Tabitha, slightly out of breath. She twisted to look at Ray, who was looking quite winded and trying to suck in lungfuls of air, and she grinned. Whether he had wanted to be part of her scheme in the first place or not, the boy had delivered, but well. Jubilee was waiting by the tree, looking around expectantly, her expression puzzled.

"Nice work, Ray-Ray!" Tabitha practically squealed. "Now all we've gotta do is wait for Arial to show up, and then when they see each other, the rest is history, baby!"

"Yeah, Tab? I don't think that's _quite_ how it works." He said, throwing her a look.

"Yes it is." She answered, totally unfazed. "After all, _WE_ are the matchmakers of LEGEND. We. Are. BOOMZERKER."

"Careful, that name might actually grow on me."

"Ooh, here comes Arial! Shh!"

Sure enough, Arial came around the far corner of the building, occasionally glancing down at a paper in his hand, brow furrowed and the corners of his mouth turned down. Tabitha grabbed Ray by the sleeve and the two slowly ducked down behind a low bush, just enough so they could still watch. Arial walked slowly toward the tree, freezing to a dead halt when he saw who was waiting for him there.

"This isn't going to wo-ork…" Ray muttered in a low singsong, and she glared without looking at him, making a half-hearted slap in his direction that didn't connect. They watched as Arial took a few more hesitant steps forward, and Jubilee, sensing his presence, slowly spun on her heel and faced him, eyes widening. Tabitha grinned in triumph; Her plan had been set in motion, and now it would go perfectly. She could barely hold still in her excitement as she watched her two friends walk up to one another, exchange a few soft words for a moment, then turn and start walking off together.

"Game, set and _match_, Ray-Ray!" She hissed with a grin.

"Tabitha, give it up. They're totally onto us." He groaned.

"Oh, you've got no faith, sparky! They're not onto us. Look, they're walking away together," she said firmly, pointing at them, "They are off to have a rockin' first date, all thanks to the Boomzerker Matchmaking duo!"

* * *

It came as something of a relief to Arial to see the confused look on Jubilee's face, mirroring his own bewilderment. He caught movement in his peripheral vision and glanced slightly to his left, immediately having to suppress a groan. Boom-Boom. He should have guessed. And to make matters worse, it seemed she had somehow roped once of the Institute's new boys into her little plot, the tall blonde guy who cold manipulate electricity. What was his name? Randy? Ray? Ray sounded right. But he didn't strike Arial as the pushover type; so why was he aiding and abetting Tabitha's little scheme?

He redirected his attention to Jubilee, who slowly started to approach him, lifting a hand that clutched a piece of paper. He picked up his stride to meet her halfway, grimacing.

"Did you also get—?"

"A note?" He finished. "_Ja_. _Und_ don't look now but ve are being vatched."

"By who?" She asked, fidgeting as she resisted turning to see.

"I vill explain, but first, valk vith me? Let them think ve are being casual _und_ falling for this…fake rendezvous."

"If you say so." She answered, shrugging and falling into place beside him as he started walking.

"_Sehr gut_, _fraulein_." He murmured.

"Ah, I'm not sure what you just said, but…thanks, I guess? So…what exactly is going on? And what's with the note to meet you by the tree? Doesn't even look like your handwriting." She remarked.

"_Und_ I should hope you do not put little hearts somevhere in all your vords vhen you write." He added. "It vould seem Boom-Boom tried to get us to meet up."

"Boom-Boom?" Jubilee said. "Well, that explains the hearts, but there's no way she wrote this!" She held up the note, unfolded it briefly, and tapped at one of the sentences. "That is so a guy's handwriting."

"_Ja_," Arial said, nodding, "She had a guy vith her, vatching us. Tall _und_ blonde vith orange highlights in his fringe?"

"Oh, _Ray_!" Jubilee hissed abruptly, making him jump. "I would have understood if it were Bobby, BUT RAY?! I'm beginning to think he can be too nice for his own good."

"I vould think _Fraulein_ Tabitha can be hard to say n…n-no to, vhen she vants." Arial remarked, having difficulty in his attempts to speak more like an American. Jubilee looked up at him, blinking, and almost took a full step to the side, putting a good couple of feet between them. Arial stopped mid-stride, staring openly.

"_Vas_? _Vas ist das_?"

"N-nothing." She answered, looking away, the color draining from her face.

"Do I sound _that_ bad when I try to use more English vords?" He asked weakly, rolling his shoulders.

"No, no, it's not that." She answered. "I'm just a little…well…it's…look, can we just get the whole Q-and-A bit over with?"

She started to walk ahead, but he stayed where he was, rooted to the spot by a horrifying realization.

"I make you nervous!" He blurted out in shock. She spun to look at him, dark eyes going huge, and he gave a weak, disheartened nod. "I scare you."

"No!" She said, just a bit too quickly, then amended, "Yes. I mean! Maybe a little! But can you blame me? Huh? All I ever hear about you is…well; it's not exactly good. Not all of it, anyway."

He was about to reply angrily, but stopped short, realizing that was his own fault. _He_ had built that reputation for himself, both the vices and the virtues together. And at the Institute, he had a feeling the list of the former greatly outweighed the latter. Instead, he bit his lower lip, chewing slightly, and ducked his head to avoid her searching gaze.

"It would help, you know," Jubilee said testily, "If you'd talk. At least give me a reason to believe you're not totally everything that the stories I'm told say you are."

She had a point. She had a really good point. He let out a weary sigh and took a couple of small steps forward, waving a hand about helplessly.

"I suppose I have n-no ch-choice." He murmured. "Not if I vant to…to start making things right."

She relaxed, a telltale twitch in her cheek indicating one of those crooked smiles was about to break out on her face.

"You mean it?" She asked.

"You have _mein_ honor as an admirer of Captain America." He answered.

"An admi—you're kidding, right?"

He gave another shrug and a sheepish grin, chuckling nervously. She tossed him an unreadable look and opened her mouth to speak. But whatever she had been planning to say never came out, as within the next second they were interrupted.

"Hey Jubilee, this guy bothering you?"

Arial looked over his shoulder, surprised to see two of the other new recruits from the Institute approaching them, and a quick glance at Jubilee said he wasn't the only one. The brunette boy was almost a full head shorter than him, and had one of those irritating expressions that was somewhere between annoyingly superior and extremely ticked off. His friend was slightly taller, a sandy blonde in cool colors and mostly denim, with a worried look on his face.

"Bobby, Sam, I'm fine!" Jubilee insisted, coming over to them, "Arial and I were just talking."

"Really?" Bobby said, not amused, "'Cause I think your conversation's over. What are you even doing, talking to him? He's bad news."

Arial frowned in annoyance. Who the heck was _this_ kid? Put him through a two-week boot camp and throw some sunglasses on him, he could _easily_ be Scott's miniature double. Lieutenant Jock-Strap Junior. He wanted to run that one past Ashton, then recalled with a sad pang that he no longer spoke to Ashton, thanks to the battle lines the Brotherhood drew in the sand.

"You're not the boss of me, _Iceman_!" She snapped.

"Look, look," Arial said in a tense sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose, "I vill just leave. Okay?"

"No, Arial," Jubilee said quickly, "You don't have—"

"Yeah," Bobby said, taking a threatening step forward, "You do that. You don't wanna get iced." Arial raised his eyebrows sharply at this threat, and Sam spoke up in a wavering voice.

"N-not like killed! He means the ice thing literally!" He clarified. To emphasize the point, Bobby held up a hand, frost rapidly forming over his fist.

"Guys, knock it off!" Jubilee protested sharply.

"You really vant to do this?" Arial demanded.

"Not really," Bobby admitted, "But the X-Men stick together. We protect each other!"

"What?" Jubilee squawked, surging toward him, only to be held back by Sam.

"Is that supposed to be a joke?" Arial scoffed with a mirthless laugh echoing in his words. "Or are you a bad liar? Or are you really just _that_ naïve?"

"You wanna try me?" Bobby demanded, the ice beginning to encase his entire arm. Arial's posture tensed, he leaned forward, and his mouth opened to speak furiously, but in the next second, he vanished in a blur and a rush of air. The three were left standing, staring at the spot where he'd been, blinking in slight confusion. Finally, Bobby lowered his fist, arm returning to normal, and snorted, a smug smile forming on his face.

"What a chicken."

"Bobby, what the heck?!" Jubilee blurted out, grabbing him by the shoulder and spinning him around to face her. "He didn't do anything to me!"

"Yet." The brunette boy responded grimly. "But he might have."

"Yeah, and if he tried anything, I could have taken care of it!" She insisted.

"Oh, sure! You could've what?" Bobby giggled, prodding Sam, who tried to suppress a snicker. "Dazzled him with a light show?"

She reeled back as though she'd been slapped.

"Y-yeah, like those sparklepire romance novels!" Sam's own giggle punctuated his words like a high-pitched squeak.

"Do I dazzle you, Arial?" Bobby simpered, making an exaggerated flirty face.

"You guys are such jerks!" She snapped. "I can handle myself, especially against—"

"Aww, come on, Jubs." Bobby said, waving a dismissive hand. "It's what we do, protecting damsels and all that. Even Scott says so! Your fireworks may be pretty and all, but it's still—"

" 'Pretty?' My powers are 'pretty?!'" She gasped in outraged horror. "Oh, that tears it, Bobby Drake! You think I can't defend myself because I don't have some macho tough dude power? I'll show you! I'm not some little damsel in distress!"

"Jeez, Jubs, calm dow—"

"And I'm going to prove it to you and everyone else! With Sam as my witness—" she jabbed a finger in the taller boy's direction and he jumped in surprise, "—I'm going to make friends with Arial! I'll get him to come back to the Institute. Just _watch_."

And that being said, she spun on her heel and stomped away, pride still stinging.

As for Arial, he was as equally surprised as the others when he was whisked away. He had no idea what was going on, not even when he was deposited on his rear a couple miles away, out of breath and dizzy.

"You know, you _really_ need to work on your people skills, Shirley Temple." A familiar voice said in false lecturing tones as he received a light smack on the top of his head.

"Pietro?" He sputtered in disbelief. _Pietro_ had pulled him away from that kid?

"You looked like you needed a chill pill," he answered smoothly, "Not that I wouldn't have gotten a kick out of you wailing on that freshman goody-goody."

"But…vhy then?" Arial asked.

"Magneto's orders," came the cool reply, "You're _late_ for your training session, Golden Boy. And he's not exactly happy about it."

"_Scheiβe_!" Arial hissed. Of course! His training session! How could he have forgotten?!

"Don't worry about it so much! Give the old man some more gray hair; he'll get over it. Now come on," Pietro changed tack abruptly, seizing Arial by the shirt and running faster than what the other boy could keep up with, "I wanna see your chewing-out! This is going to be _hilarious_!"

"_Dummkopf_! Slow! Down!" Arial yelped, stumbling as he was dragged along.

"What's that?" Pietro asked innocently. "Speed up? Well, if you insist!"

He threw himself into each long-legged stride, and the speed was too much for Arial to do anything more than stumble and flail along behind. Buildings and trees practically flew past them, and within less than a few minutes, they had arrived back at the boarding house, whereupon the Brotherhood's resident speed demon once again deposited his rival on the ground. Arial gave a violent, shuddering cough, gasping as he tried to catch his breath and get to his feet.

"Y-you…you son of—"

"You're welcome, Lederhosen," Pietro cut him off, voice honey-sweet. "He's gonna be here for ya in a sec."

Arial fell silent, unsure of what to say. Part of him was more than eager to start a fistfight, but another part of him—something that relied more on instinct and emotion than coherent thought—knew it was a bad idea and that he should simply await the arrival of his mentor. He wasn't used to getting that sort of hunch, and decided to go with it.

"By the way," Pietro added in a low voice, giving him a light smack on the arm, "You owe me now. Twice, actually, since I saved your butt _and_ got you here before you were any later."

And before Arial could protest, he darted into the house with a laugh, leaving the blonde boy where he was, index finger in the air, to bite down on what wanted to say and simply puff out his cheeks, grumbling in anger.

* * *

**A/N: Yes, Boomzerker is such an epic crackship that they can come up with their own shipping name. And a huge thanks here to my reader La Licorne for suggesting some useful ideas concerning character/plot development and consistency. I really appreciate it!**


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